Rise of Naruto Uzumaki, the STAR SAGE!
by TEKNAM
Summary: AU Fic. When his wedding to Hinata is interrupted by a rogue follower of Orochimaru, Naruto, armed with immense power, takes off in hot pursuit. After a long fight, he and Hinata are forced to wait for their foe to come out of hiding. During this brief interlude, Naruto decides to tell Hinata his life story, right from the beginning... Chap11 altered; STRONG NaruHina pairing.
1. WEDDING CRASHER & THE BLONDE BEGINNING

[A/N]Hey all, Tek again, and I'm coming at you with a rewrite of chapter 1.

Since the story was removed earlier this year, I started thinking of ways to improve it. One way I came up with involved aging the main romantic couple by a decade and have them fighting a particularly dangerous foe… then have Naruto back track through his life, making HIM the narrator of the entire story. His narrations will be denoted by _**~ words typed in italics between these markings ~**_. Therefore, THIS will become the OFFICIAL Chapter 1, while portions of the original will be chopped out and planted here, to be use as "round-out" material. From there, I will create several extra chapter using pieces from the original; I expect to round out at about three-four chapters by the time I'm done.

Before I leave you to the revised Chapter 1, I have to make an announcement. To the person who left an anonymous review asking questions about Naruto's powers, specifically a "Star Rasengan", I will answer your question: YES, he will. He won't be able to use for quite a time yet, though, so to anyone waiting to see its effect, I'll give you a quick multi-shot glimpse of the "Rasen Hoshigan" and its derivative jutsu, as well as a special weapon I devised for his personal use.

This, however, brings up an IMPORTANT request on my part, and I ask this humbly of all of you, my readers: If you like the story, and have a question you wish to have answered, from now on, PLEASE make an account and SIGN IN to leave a name I can use to send you a personal reply. I don't want to have to use pre-chapter note space to answer an anonymous query about powers and abilities. Therefore, again, I humbly ask those of you who read this and DON'T have an account to PLEASE make one so I can reply to you personally. I like to have some understanding of my fans when I reply. ^_^ Now, since I've gone and used about half a page just with this, I'll get into the rewrite now. ^_^ [A/N]

_**~~~DEAD CENTER OF THE FOREST OF DEATH, IN A SMALL CLEARING~~~**_

A dance, she thought; that was what she was witnessing as she fought the blonde man and his indigo-haired bride: a dance of two loving, trusting lovers against a single threat in the midst of a dense forest.

This woman, a shinobi known only by the name Guren, had been a virtual unknown to the Shinobi world. However, three days prior, in a rather brazen attempt to incite terror in the village of Konohagakure no Sato, she'd appeared out of nowhere as an uninvited guest at the wedding of their most recent Hokage… who also happened to be the blonde man she was battling. The woman with him, who had a full figure and a dangerous look in her eyes, had been darting back and forth between her husband and Guren for several minutes now, both of them using the other's apparent natural flexibility and trust in each other to not only dodge Guren's attacks, but expertly counteract them at EVERY turn.

She couldn't understand it; for the longest time, Guren had basked in the fact that the crystal formations formed by her specialty Shoton Jutsu were virtually unbreakable. Unbreakable, except for two specific weaknesses: Attacks with a fire, wind, or lightning-based nature, as they were incapable of being crystallized, and a specific sound wave frequency that only one of her ex-teammates had possessed before the blonde man had killed him.

It therefore terrified Guren to discover that not only did BOTH of her opponents possess a dojutsu that made her Shoton jutsu completely useless, but also that they were able to super-charge the power levels of any and ALL of their pre-existing techniques with the abilities their eyes granted them. And with the blonde man being a master of a jutsu she thought to be long-dead, she paled a bit more every time she saw him form a fresh orb of swirling blue chakra in either hand.

It also didn't help her position that she was quickly going numb; the indigo-haired woman's mastery of the Hyuuga family's Jyuken style was quite extensive. The indigo-haired woman had managed to eliminate several of Guren's chakra points with highly precise strikes. What was worse, she had more than likely done extensive damage to Guren's chakra network as well. She could feel her arms slowly going numb…

Despite these massive setbacks, Guren wasn't out yet. She still had a few aces up her sleeve, and she was waiting for the perfect time to use them. As soon as she felt her left arm go dead, she knew she'd reached the right time.

"SHOPO: CHISHIO SHOHUO!" Guren shouted, holding her still working right arm upright and performing a single hand gesture that held her fingers our like a star. Instantly, Guren's body crystallized. Several extra layers of the crystal substance arose from the ground, encasing the first layer several times over before compacting down into a single, diamond-tough layer.

The blonde man walked over and formed another of his spinning blue chakra spheres, smiling a bit as he watched several small, sparkling orbs appears within it. Looking back at the crystal mass, he grinned maliciously.

"Think you can waltz in on my wedding and kidnap my wife, huh? THINK AGAIN! RASEN HOSHIGAN!" he shouted, thrusting his hand toward the crystal surface and forcing the ball of energy into the structure. He smiled a bit as he watched the ball of energy begin to rapidly shave through the crystal, only to watch as another several layers appeared and cut off the orb from its minute connection to his hand. He stepped back, watching the orb dissolve in the crystalline mass until it simply vanished from existence.

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?" He shouted, focusing a bit more of his chakra. This time, he created five of them, one on the tip of each finger, each laced with several small, sparkling spots. Breathing deeply, he turned to the crystal mass and prepared.

"HOSHI NO SENPO: RASEN HOSHIRENGAN!" he shouted, slamming his fingers into the crystal. He smirked a bit as the five swirling masses bored their way into the structure, but cursed when once again, extra layers of crystals erupted from below his feet to cover off the damage done. Once again, he watched as the five spheres faded from existence and sat down.

"DAMN IT! What the hell is with this technique? No one can possibly be able to make THIS level of self-sustaining jutsu!" the blonde man said, sighing a bit.

"Naruto, please calm down. I've already figured this out," his indigo-haired partner said calmly. The blonde man, now identified as Naruto, got up and walked over to her. With another sigh, he smiled and looked into her pale, white eyes.

"Well, let me hear it, please. The more we can plan out how to take that thing down before she comes out, the better off we are!" Naruto said.

She smiled sadly, and said, "Unfortunately, there isn't much we can do. The jutsu is fast-acting and self-sustaining, just as you said; it's set on a chakra-based time-delay system. She only used a certain amount of her chakra forming this structure, and she's no doubt using it as a permanent shield while she heals her body. Whatever chakra is being used to fuel this technique had to either be retracted by her, or else depleted by an outside source. It only uses up a small amount of its stored chakra for your attacks, so the more damage you do to it, the more likely you are to break through and force her out."

"In other words, I have to use THAT technique… How much time do you think we have, Hinata?" Naruto asked. Hinata's eyes widened, and soon, her eyes transformed; instantly, the color changed from pale white to emerald green, and two golden six-pointed stars appeared in her eyes, one behind the other, the one in back darker. Around the two formed a series of strange, angled curves, also gold in color, while within her pupils formed a pair of golden five-pointed stars, once again a bright one over a dark one. She gazed hard on the structure for less than thirty seconds, and then closed her eyes, returning them to their original pale-white coloring. She took his left hand in her right and smiled.

"Don't worry about it, Naruto… You'll have plenty of time to buildup your chakra. She's comatose in there until the technique runs out. She's got it set for about forty minutes with minute amounts of chakra holding the thing together from inside. If we both begin building our chakra, we can catch her off-guard. You use THAT technique, and I'll be ready to provide back-up in the event she manages to get free before you hit her," Hinata said. Naruto smiled and sat down on the grass, allowing his henge to drop. Within seconds, a pair of orange, black-tipped fox ears popped up on his head while his hair turned a blood-soaked shade of orange. He groaned as nine billowing fox tails erupted from a spot above his tailbone, each of them orange in color with black-colored fur adorning the tips. His canine teeth and fingernails lengthened considerably, becoming ferocious fangs and vicious claws. His eyes morphed, changing from a serene cerulean blue to a feral bloody orange with black slit pupils.

Naruto lay back on the grass and watched as Hinata, his normally jovial and peaceful new wife, underwent the same transformations he had, he found his mind wandering back a ways, numerous thoughts flying through his mind in slow motion. He could almost swear he was reliving his life in third person…

"Naruto?" he heard Hinata say his name and sat upright.

"What's up?" he asked, concerned. She smiled at him, which with her blood-red fox-like eyes, made her look quite unnerving.

"What were you thinking about?" she asked. Naruto sighed and flopped back onto his back.

"I was thinking about how we came to be here, as we are now… The only two living Star Sages… The only two living bearers of the Hoshigan… The two halves of the Kyuubi no Yoko… Me the Hokage, you the head of the Hyuuga Clan… US MARRIED…" he heavily emphasized the last two words, drawing Hinata's attention.

"What do you mean? Did you never expect we'd be married? Or is it that you never expected to get married TO ME?" she asked, a bit scared. If this was going where she thought it was, she may just wind up calling annulment.

"Nothing like that," Naruto said, "The moment I met you, I knew we'd be the closest of friends. From the moment I found out we were on the same team, I intended to ask you out. From the moment we became Konoha's first two-man squad, I fully expected to one day marry you. I only ever saw US together. We complete each other so well; I'm overly emotional and don't think too far ahead of things, while you're more calm and level-headed and always think before leaping. We fill each other's blind spots in battle… not to mention we fill the holes in our hearts…"

Hinata smiled and rested next to Naruto on her side, cuddling up next to her new husband to comfort him. She couldn't care less at this point if she was ruining the wedding dress she was wearing. Right now, her husband needed her.

"It's alright, Naruto…" she said, kissing him on the cheek tenderly, "I know exactly what you mean. Both of us were lonely souls until we found each other… I guess things just seemed to pick up quickly after we met. I-I guess you could say that's why I followed you around everywhere you went…" Naruto didn't miss the subtle hint of a stutter in her voice, and it made him smile. Despite everything they'd been through, Hinata was still the shy little girl he knew and loved… despite her extreme, volatile temper when she suspected people of foul play and her tendency to attempt to finish a fight as quickly as she could so she could spend more time with him. No matter what anyone said, though, Naruto loved her. Her strengths, her insecurities, her moments of vulnerability, her ups and down, he loved them all because they made her who she was.

He never missed a chance to smile wide and kiss her when she was being too cute for words, or to hold her tight when she was nervous and stuttering, or, above all else, the chance to just be near her and smile with her.

To be able to be around the woman who was his everything was his only reason for being alive. Hinata could see it clearly, and loved him even more for it.

For as far back as she could remember she'd always fanned a flame for the impulsive, knuckle-headed blonde boy she'd only recently married. For years, she'd followed him from the shadows, secretly wishing that he'd notice her and say something.

Her biggest problem, however, was her shyness; whenever he was near, she'd overheat and pass out from excitement and anxiety. The one thing she wanted more than anything was to able to stand by his side without fainting. Watching him, however, she'd had her share of doubts, and eventually, severe fears. She'd watched as he fanned his own flame for Sakura, their fellow shinobi, for years. Strangely, around the time he came back from a nearly three year training journey with his sensei Jiraiya the Toad Hermit, he'd acted slightly differently. In fact, the first time she saw him after his return, he acted entirely out of character.

Instead of going immediately for his sensei, Hatake Kakashi, or even Sakura, he'd sought HINATA, of all people, out. That fact alone had been enough to make her faint again.

What surprised her more was the fact that he was there when she woke up… IN HER BED.

Her biggest fantasy had finally come true.

There she was, just coming back to conscious thought, and the first person she saw was her beloved Naruto. The shock alone made her faint again.

Over the months that followed, Naruto spent more and more time with Hinata, helping her boost her self-esteem and increase her strength of will so she wouldn't pass out on him. By the time they'd both made Jounin, which took another two years, the two had managed to become inseparable. This fact didn't escape Sakura, however, who, without Naruto to vent her frustrations on, actively chased after him, much to Hinata's dismay. Naruto settled the entire debacle with a single spar, which he won, though not from actually trying.

Sakura had been all too willing to rush into things and strike Naruto down, and had left herself completely open for a leg-sweep and a single karate chop to the back of her neck, which knocked her out cold. When she came to, Naruto demanded an explanation, and the whole story came out amid a torrent of Sakura's tears. After that, Sakura had dropped out of the Shinobi Program all together. If Naruto, without the use of Chakra-enhanced physical strength, had been able to knock her out with one hand, how could she hope to be effective in battle?

This left Kakashi with only one option: disband Team 7, which at the time, consisted of Kiba Inuzuka, a wild loudmouth, Sakura, and a pale boy from the ROOT division of ANBU named Sai. Naruto had come up with a way to counteract this, though it would break up the dynamic of their squad. Going before the Hokage, he requested to be placed on a squad ALONE with Hinata, while their teammate, Shino Aburame, would be transferred into Kakashi's team, thereby making the first ever all-male squad AND the first ever two-man cell. The Hokage, Tsunade, had been only TOO pleased to approve, and from then on, their partnership was lauded as one of the strongest in Konoha.

Now, here they were, both age twenty-six, freshly married, and with Naruto instated as the new Hokage as soon as he returned from their honeymoon, which, due to Guren's brazen actions, had been postponed.

Looking back on the recent events, Naruto could only find himself to be at fault; he'd been far too busy basking in the glory and joy of his happiest day alive to notice Guren slipping up close. One minute Naruto and Hinata were about to kiss so Ino could take a picture, the next Naruto was kissing crystal; hearing Hinata's muffled cried for help and watching Guren's back recede into the depths of the Forest of Death. Feeling something dark rise within him, he ordered everyone to stay put and let him handle it. With that, he'd plunged headfirst into the forest and tracked Guren's movements to a small stone building in the forest's center.

He also couldn't blame Hinata; that would be wrong and unjust. She had been just as happy as he was, if not more so. Besides, what better time is there to let your guard down and enjoy some down time than your own wedding?

Coming right down to it, Naruto realized he couldn't even blame Guren for this; she'd done what any decent shinobi would have done. She waited for her target to leave and opening and struck a debilitating blow right in the thick of a happy moment. He was brought from his thoughts, however when Hinata shook his shoulder, her face filling his eyes with that innocent, shy look he loved so much.

"Can you tell me the story of how you got your eyes again, Naruto?" Hinata asked innocently, "I know you've told me about a hundred times by now and that it's a painful memory, but… It's just so funny watching you act it out as you tell it!" Naruto chuckled again; Hinata's smile was just too cute, and the way she asked, combined with her smile and her reason for asking again… it was almost too cute for words. With a warm smile and a shake of his head, he looked her in the eyes.

"Don't worry about it, Hinata… Nothing makes me happier than making you smile. Besides… sometimes the best way to get over memories that hurt you is to remember them on a constant basis. Now… Instead of JUST the tale of my eyes, why don't we just see how much of a life story I can dictate in forty minutes?" Naruto asked. Hinata smiled wide and nodded, kissing him on the cheek.

_**_  
RISE OF UZUMAKI NARUTO: STAR SAGE!**_

_**CHAPTER 1: WEDDING CRASHER & THE BLONDE BEGINNING**_

_**OP: "SOUL DYNAMITE" - ACCESS**_

_**~~ It was a warm, spring day in the middle of April, roughly nine-thirty in the morning. I'd gone to see Jiji-san that morning after sneaking out of my flat and heading for the Hokage Tower. I was lucky I hadn't run into any flash mobs that day. After a few moments of talking, Jiji called for an ANBU and requested that he take me into the forest outside of Konoha for a leisurely stroll; with an ANBU guard, I wouldn't be attacked in the event of a mob forming.**_

_**I felt even safer at the time, because this particular ANBU was one I'd come to know and was good friends with. He wore a Wolf mask, and most people in the village at the time called him "RAIBU", if only for the fact that he seemed to exude a sharp, electric aura whenever he saw someone either planning to attack me or already attacking me.**_

_**I'll never forget that day for as long as I live… Because it was the day that I lost the only remaining family I had… Well, at least until a few days ago. ~**_

_A young boy, eight years old by first glance, and a slightly older teen, clad in grey with a white porcelain mask decorated with a wolf design walked through a lush, green forest. Around them, the wind blew gently, rustling the leaves in the trees._

"_Okami-san," the boy said, staying at his companion's side, "Where are we going?"_

"_Hokage-sama told us to go for a stroll in the woods, Naruto-kun," the masked youth said, smiling behind his mask as the gentle breeze played through his grey hair, which he kept spiked to the left, "And I've told you before. You can just call me Kakashi-san. No need to use ANBU call-signs when we're strolling in the woods, right?" The youth removed his mask a moment later, sliding it off to the left side under his hair. The boy, Naruto, smiled up at the face of his walking companion, which… was masked even further._

_As far as Naruto could tell, Kakashi was an extremely cautious person; why else would he wear a second mask that went to JUST below his eyes, and a bandana that covered his left eye under his ANBU mask? However, in spite of this, Naruto respected his older friend. They had only known each other a few years, since Naruto's sixth birthday, and had become quite close. Despite that, Naruto still had trouble with formalities. Kakashi had been trying to "help" him with this._

_**~ Kakashi was always a very guarded man, never wanting to be seen too often without his iconic face mask. He was a good man then, and he's remained that way over the past years. I was always in awe of how he carried himself with such a dignified air while still remaining so aloof. I wanted to try to be like him and told him so, but after he looked me in the eyes and gave me a sad smile… well, I'll just say that was enough of a hint for me. He hadn't gotten that way from trying for years; he'd gotten that way because he HAD to be that way. It was his only defense against the twisted garbage we have to deal with in this world. ~**_

"_I know… It's just the ANBU have helped me in the past couple years. I have to show my respect!" the boy said. Kakashi gave his little friend what the people of their village referred to as an "eye-smile"._

_**~ That was true, though. The ANBU, from the time I turned four, had helped me out with my basic needs. Jiji had kept me with him until I turned three, and then left me mostly in the care of the ANBU; who were only too happy to help him raise me. Out of all the people who live in this village, aside from you and the others from our generation, they were the smart ones: they had been there when my father, the Fourth, sealed the Kyuubi inside me. They knew WHO I was, and WHAT I wasn't. **_

_**I can't begin to tell you how desensitized to death I became, watching random ANBU drop out of nowhere on any given day and kill people. I think after a while, they even decided to get creative and find as many ways to kill people who broke Jiji-san's law as they could, if only to make sure I wouldn't freeze up later. It traumatized me, for sure, but not as much as what happened next.**_

_**There we were, walking along, when I felt a strange breeze. We'd been walking WITH it, but the one that blew past us went AGAINST us. That told me something was off… and that's when I saw him. It's rather sad that the only way I could think of to tell Kakashi was to point. ~**_

_A second later, a strong wind blew from several feet ahead of the two. As Naruto shifted his gaze forward, he stopped and gasped. His eyes widened and his breathing became shallow and quickened. Kakashi failed to notice any of this until he opened his eye to see that Naruto had silently lifted one hand to point straight ahead._

"_Naruto-kun, what's…?" Kakashi gasped in surprise when he looked to where his young friend was pointing._

_**~ Even now, when I talk to him in my dreams, Kozu-nii will always have that big gash across his stomach… even though he's dead, and physical injuries don't carry over. ~**_

_Several yards ahead, sitting against a tree, was a young man who looked no older than nineteen years old. Kakashi looked closer and saw a large red gash in the youth's stomach, and from the small pool forming beneath the stranger, Kakashi knew the man wasn't long for this world._

_**~ This showed me another side of Kakashi that I still deeply admire: his ability to take in the situation calmly and form a plan of action instead of simply jumping in blind, as I tend to. ~**_

_Making a quick decision, Kakashi turned Naruto around and said, "Naruto-kun, stay with him while I go and get the Hokage and some Med-nin! We'll do everything we can for him! GO!" Kakashi took off like a bullet from a gun, prompting Naruto to run to the man's side._

_**~ I'll never really know what made me say something, but to this day, I can still recall how absolutely stupid I must have sounded, even IF I was scared. Granted, for a while, everything I heard Kozu-nii say was even scarier, but I got over it eventually. ~**_

"_Etoranze-san!*" Naruto said as his slid next to the injured man on his knees. The man looked up at Naruto with pain-filled eyes; seconds later, the man's eyes seemed to calm, and his face curved into a smile._

"_Ah… N-Naru-kun…" the man said, trying to sit up a little straighter. He winced when a burst of pain shot through his chest. Naruto leveled his eyes on the man, giving him a look of flustered worry._

_The blonde boy started, "W-who are you, and how do you know that name? I hardly let ANYONE call me that, aside from-"_

"_-Kakashi-san and Sarutobi-sama, correct?" the man finished with a groan. Naruto jumped back a bit._

"_H-HOW DID YOU KNOW THAT?" he asked._

"_Well, to answer your questions in order… My name is Kozue. Namikaze Kozue, your second cousin, once removed. The only reason I have for knowing that name is… because I've been keeping an eye on you for the past couple weeks. Trying… I was trying to find you and… give you the gift of our clan… UNGH!" the man said, groaning again as another blast of pain wracked his body. He soon found himself slowly resting on his back, aided gently by Naruto until his head softly touched earth._

_**~ Given my lack of medical training, there was little I could do. My mind was numb, and I wasn't thinking straight. Looking back, had I managed to keep from losing my head, I might have been able to save him. ~**_

_Naruto could only listen as Kozue took a deep breath and said, "I knew your parents before their untimely death. I can give you some insight now, but I'll have to give you the rest later." When Naruto opened his mouth to ask how it was possible, Kozue raised a finger to silence the boy. _

_Between groans of pain, Kozue continued, "One of the unique gifts of the gift I wish to… bestow upon you is the ability to… commune with the dead within your dreams. This does NOT mean that you'd be… dreaming of talking to the dead; IT WOULD BE REAL. You'd remember every … second of the experience as if the person you spoke with had been sitting on the edge of your bed, in the … flesh."_

"_To begin with… You were probably never told, but… Konoha's Yondaime Hokage is… well, WAS your father. Now, if you've ever heard the stories… of the "Hot-Blooded Red Death of Konoha", you should be able to piece the rest of the puzzle together. To specify, The Yondaime, Namikaze Minato, also known as… the Yellow Flash of Konoha, and Uzumaki Kushina, the Hot-Blooded Red Death, were your parents, with your mother being… the Kyuubi's holder before you. Your father and I… talked a bit after he died, which is how I knew where to look for you." _

"_I poured… everything I had into my search for you… but ultimately, Konoha's greatest enemy, Orochimaru, who found and attacked me. He saw my powers as a necessity for his plans, and wanted to kill me for them. Unfortunately, my powers are kept sealed unless I need them… and I vastly underestimated him. I'm going to pass soon, but not before I give you the greatest gift of your family's clan. I need you… to close your eyes for me… and to place your head so our eyes are about two feet apart… hurry…" Kozue said. Naruto nodded and, quickly moving into position on the soft grass, closed his eyes._

"_Promise me one thing, Naru-kun…" Kozue said._

"_What is it?"_

"_No matter how much I may scream, please ignore it. One more thing: in order to… preserve your mind, I wish to ask that you DO NOT OPEN YOUR EYES until I say to, alright?" Kozue asked. Naruto found it an odd request, but promised._

"_Alright…" Kozue said. Naruto stayed silent as he felt two fingers, Kozue's middle and index fingers, touched his eyes thrice. However, he wasn't prepared for what come next._

_**~ What followed next was nothing short of disturbing. I heard a pair of wet "popping" noises, along with several of his grunts of pain. A set of loud screams was followed by pressure against my eyes that I'd never felt. I could have sworn I felt something wet on my eyelids, but I focused mainly on not screaming or opening my eyes. ~**_

_A wet, disgusting sound filled the air, coupled at first with pained groans, and then loud, agonized screams from directly below him. Naruto wanted to know what was happening, but wasn't about to break a promise. He stayed quiet, even as he felt two round objects pressing harder and harder into his eyes. The pain of the force became intense, but Naruto endured._

"_Uzumaki Naruto… By order of the stars themselves, I, Namikaze Kozue, bearer of the long-lived Hoshigan, do hereby bestow upon you my eyes, and thusly, grant you all the power they possess. May you use them wisely until the end of your days," Kozue said._

_**~ After hearing those words I suddenly didn't want to open my eyes at all. Fear had taken over; I didn't want to see whatever Kozu-nii looked like at that point. ~**_

_Naruto nodded once before Kozue said, "You can open your eyes now." When Naruto did, the first thing he noticed was that everything seemed to be a fair bit fuzzy. He could see everything clearly before, but now… it was as if someone had whacked him over the back of the head with a thick, wooden bat. A few seconds of looking at the hazy images allowed his eyes time to regain focus, but he silently wished he hadn't opened his eyes at all._

_Kozue lay beneath him, a smile plastered on his face, with his eyes closed… and multiple trails of blood leaking from the corners of each._

_**~ At the time, he called it "scary". It was anything but scary, really… It was the second most terrifying moment of my life, eclipsed ONLY by the day we discovered the proper way to use the Hoshiton: Saigo no Ten. THAT was the most terrifying day of my life… I was afraid I'd lose you, Hinata. I didn't want to run that risk; I was more than happy to keep using my Kage Bunshin as remote bombs.**_

_**At this point in time, however, I was scared out of my mind. I just discover living family, and I find out they're dying. Who wouldn't be scared hearing that? ~**_

"_I know this is scary for you, Naru-kun…" Kozue said, "But I should explain a few things… about your new powers. They will awaken in stages. The first stage is close at hand; the day you enter the academy… you will be granted enhanced brain power, allowing you to… easily ascend the ranks of whatever class you find yourself in… and take the top seat. In addition, you'll also find yourself able to stop most verbal disputes with a single glance at each party. Your new powers will make you… highly sensitive toward negativity, and will drive you… to stop it, whatever the cost."_

"_The second stage will hit the day you become a genin… that day will mark the first day of your ability to commune with the dead in your dreams. However… that one will be the most painful of the three stages. The moment you tie your hitae-ate… around your head, your body will be wracked with uncontrollable spasms of pain… pain unlike anything you've ever experienced before. These spasms will only last about a minute-and-a-half… but as soon as they're over, you'll keel over… and slip into a coma. It is during this time… that your mind and soul will split from your body… as its insides are forced through… a phoenix-like state of purification. Anyone in the vicinity will see your body burst into flames. Once you've been completely taken apart… your body will be entirely reconstructed by the stars, which will then return to the skies and solidify your body in flesh and blood. Your mind and soul… will be stored within your subconscious for a time, approximately five days at the most. It is during that time that I'll fully explain everything to you… and I'll bring some special guests with me."_

"_The final stage," Kozue continued, rapidly losing strength, "will allow you to tap into your full power… but only when you find yourself in a moment of mortal danger. I WILL TELL YOU THIS NOW… DO NOT GO LOOKING FOR THIS MOMENT OF DANGER... it will happen on its own in due time. The moment it does, you will… instantaneously find yourself in control of awesome powers like you've never known… and there will be few drawbacks, aside from extreme exhaustion after the first three hours of use… and easy slips into fatigue as you train it. This will only last until you start to get the hang of it… Once you master the first jutsu… you will never hit another drawback again. As I said, when you make Genin, I'll be able to fully explain everything."_

"_W-wait, what do you mean?" Naruto asked._

"_I'm sorry… Naru-kun, Orochimaru really did a number on me… I've been moving slowly through this forest… for the better part of a day… trying to keep my blood levels up by… transfusing my chakra into my bones… to boost blood creation, but it's not working… anymore. I don't… have long left…" Kozue said, giving Naruto a sad smile._

_**~ It's sad, thinking about what I said to Kozu-nii… I must have sounded like some spoiled rich kid who'd just had a new toy taken away for the first time. ~**_

"_NO! You can't leave yet! I only just met you!" Naruto said, gasping a bit when Kozue struggled to raise his hand to rest on the boy's head._

"_Don't worry… Naru-kun… as long as you… believe, I'll always… be close. If you can… remember me, I won't ever leave you. You're destined for great things, boya… great… things…" Kozue said, the last of his strength fleeing him with his last words. His hand slid from Naruto's head and lay limp on the ground next to him._

_Naruto stared at the paling body of his now dead cousin. His eyes became more and more focused as the seconds passed, until he could make out even the tiniest details. Kozue's eyelids had sunk into their sockets, his bright blue shirt becoming stained with crimson blood, the faded green of his pants turning brown with drying blood, his bright orange hair resting around his eyes like frames… and he was SMILING. Naruto couldn't understand it; the man had just died after giving him insane powers that he wouldn't be able to use for years, so why was he smiling so serenely?_

_Then it hit Naruto: KOZUE WAS DEAD. His cousin, who he'd known nothing about up until ten minutes ago, and had barely even gotten to know, was gone. His last remaining family member was GONE, his life and whatever they could have done together as family taken by the hands another. Naruto's eyes shut tight and, allowing his emotions to take over, slammed his fists into the ground on either side of his dead cousin._

_**~ And here was my crowning moment of brat-hood. I can't believe I actually threw a tantrum like that before I blanked out. ~**_

"_NO! NO! NO, NO, NO, NO!" Naruto screamed, "YOU CAN'T GO! YOU CAN'T! DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE AGAIN! NO!" After a minute, his mind shut down, taking his body with it as he collapsed onto the corpse of his cousin._

_This scene awaited Kakashi five minutes later when he returned with an aging man in a white robe and a squad of people with green crosses on their sleeves._

"_OH NO, NARUTO!" Kakashi and the elderly man shouted, rushing to the boy's side. The medics rushed over and moved the boy off the dead teen's body. ~_

Naruto closed his eyes, a single tear flowing from the corner of his eyes. Over the years, he'd told Hinata this story numerous times, and almost every single one of them he'd managed to refrain from crying at what had become one of the defining moment of his life… the other two being when he kissed Hinata, and the other when they made love for the first time. Compared to those three events, the day he became Hokage was barely even a blip on his radar.

"Kind of hard to believe that after all of that," Hinata said, "You took on the guise of a man who'd all but lost his mind. You went from being someone all of us in the academy wanted to be around to someone NO ONE wanted to be in the same room with. For a while, I was scared of you, of what you'd become. However, once we settled into being a team, I began to look deeper. I saw your act for what it was: an act. It was as you described Kakashi-san's attitude; your acting was your way of protecting yourself from the horrible things we have to do as shinobi. And I can understand that completely… given how I am in battle…"

Naruto turned over to face his new wife and smiled.

"Hinata, it doesn't matter to me how you are," he said lovingly, "We all have things that make us different. Love isn't about ignoring or trying to change the things about your partner that make them different. It's about accepting your partner for who they are, and for EVERYTHING they are. Accepting all of one's strengths, weaknesses, insecurities, worries, fears, and oddities is what love is all about. I'm glad I'm one of the few intelligent men left alive who knows and lives by that knowledge."

Hinata smiled and kissed him on the lips.

With a smile, she said, "And I'm glad I found one of those men. I'd hate to be with a man who treats me like an object or a trophy. Although… I have to say, I thoroughly enjoyed it when you walked with me when you came back from your trip with Jiraiya-sama. It was like you were showing me off to everyone."

Naruto chuckled a bit.

"You could say that…" he said, laughing at the mockingly scandalized look Hinata gave him before both burst out laughing.

"Wait a minute… I don't think I finished my story!" he said, holding her close.

~ THE END… FOR NOW… ~

Hope you liked it! ^_^

For those wondering, the various technique names are thus:

Shopo: Chishio Shohuo=Crystal Art: Blood Crystal Transmigration: A technique that uses a set amount of chakra to seal the user in a self-repairing crystal coffin, which places the user in a comatose state. While sealed away, the user is able to use a portion of their remaining chakra to heal injuries at an accelerated speed. The downside of this technique is that the crystal seal can only take so much damage. If an opponent can deal enough damage to the structure before the preset chakra supply runs out, the technique will be cut off immediately, leaving the user vulnerable to further attack.

Rasen Hoshigan=Spiraling Star Sphere: A standard Rasengan reinforced with stars to add extra cutting power. Instead of simply boring a hole in the foe, The Rasengan now acts in a similar manner to a Rasen Shuriken attack, but without damaging Naruto in the process.

Hoshi no Senpo: Rasen Hoshirengan=Star Sage Art: Spiraling Serial Star Spheres: Exactly what it sounds like. Naruto creates five regular-sized Rasen Hoshigan, one on each fingertip, and then slams his hand, fingers first, into the foe. Cutting power is raised five-fold, and the technique is capable of being used as a time-delayed bomb.


	2. PSYCHO BLAST & THE HOSPITAL

[A/N]Here comes Chapter 2.

As promised, I'll begin each chapter the same way. As such, It's going to take quite some time to get back to the battle with Guren… so what SHOULD have taken only a few chapters will now constitute a good deal of the story. Besides, what better way to show off a few of Naruto's bad-ass new moves and his new weapon if I don't write it this way? ^_-

So, with that said, Here comes #2. Once again, if you're going to review, PLEASE make an account so I can properly reply to you. They're free to make, last I checked, so you don't have to pay for anything. ^_^ [A/N]

_**~~~DEAD CENTER OF THE FOREST OF DEATH, IN A SMALL CLEARING~~~**_

Hinata felt something change in the air around them.

'Don't move,' she whispered, moving away from their warm embrace for the span of less than three seconds. She sat up slowly, staring around quickly, before finally locking her eyes on the crystal casing surrounding Guren.

"Naruto, come here!" she said, gesturing for him to join her. Naruto jumped up and rushed over, a look of worry painting over his happy features. However, as he scrambled up, he saw nothing different.

"What's wrong, Princess?" he asked, looking left and right, but seeing nothing.

"It's… it's that casing!" Hinata said, her voice panicking, "It somehow strengthened itself!"

Naruto did a double-take.

"What?"

"That's what I thought, too!" Hinata said, her face flushing red as her breathing began to speed up and become ragged. Naruto acted on instinct.

Without warning, he wrapped his arms around her tight and planted his lips to hers.

Hinata shook violently for several seconds before she realized what was happening and relaxed instantly. After roughly one minute, she broke away and smiled.

"T-thanks…" she asked nervously. Naruto smiled.

"You needed it," he said innocently.

It may have seemed like an emergency to anyone else, but over the years it had become almost a common occurrence between the two lovers. Hinata would suddenly break down in panic and begin hyperventilating. Naruto knew from past experiences that he needed to act quickly or there would be very little he could do without rushing to get her medical aide. There had been several occasions in their budding romance where she'd broken down that way and the only way he'd been able to help her was to sit next to her for several days while she slept in a hospital bed. No one had EVER discovered the reason behind these episodes.

Naruto had come up with this cure for her "attacks" after three months of their relationship, which, oddly, had spawned SEVENTEEN separate episodes. Whenever he saw her begin to break down, he'd pull her in, no matter where they were and kiss her while holding her gently until she realized who he was and calmed down.

Hinata nodded and sat back down, turning around so she sat with her back to him. Without so much as a word, Naruto began carefully massaging her shoulders. With every touch he could feel her muscles relax, and when he slipped the shoulders of her dress down to get at her tensed muscles more easily, he felt her literally MELT into his touch.

"Were you always this good, Naru-kun?" she asked playfully. Naruto chuckled.

"Only for you, Hina-chan. ONLY for you," he replied, matching her playful tone.

He waited about three more minutes. They were coming up on the twenty minute mark; they'd used up half of the time they needed, and neither was yet to surpass seventy-five-percent of their needed chakra.

Suddenly, Naruto's head snapped up; he'd just hit on an idea.

"Hina-chan… I could use The Rod!" He said. Hinata's face paled.

"NARUTO! WHY WOULD YOU SAY THAT?" she demanded, the hurt tone in her voice ringing strong. Naruto gave her a confused look and tapped on his left hip, where a small, cylindrical object suddenly appeared in a holster on his hip.

"Hina-chan… Please. I'm talking about the Hell Rod. May I kindly ask that we keep our minds out of the gutter until we get back home?" he asked teasingly. Hinata blushed.

"S-sorry…" she stammered, embarrassed. Naruto smiled and reached over to kiss her. Within a second, Hinata's blush shrank to surround just her nose, and she smiled back.

Naruto pulled back a moment later and gave her a playful wink. She nodded.

Naruto pulled on the object strapped to his leg, freeing it from its prison. On its own, the tool he called "Heaven's Rod" Was really anything but impressive. As it was, it rather resembled an attachment for a vacuum cleaner; it was nothing more than a three-foot silver tube secured within another three-foot silver tube by a single latch, with a single hook-like attachment situated at the one-quarter mark of the inner tube. Naruto could have held the weapon up at eye level and stared through it; the entire thing was completely hollow.

However, once his began filling the rod with his chakra, the story changed altogether. He pushed upward on the latch release, allowing the inner rod to move down six of its twelve locking notches. At the seventh notch, he released his grip on the latch release, causing the tool to stop moving. As it stopped, the tool began changing, and as Naruto brought the thing to rest along his left arm with the larger end in the crook of his elbow, the whole thing changed shape.

The larger portion in his arm slid down, becoming a rounded guard that rested square in his elbow, while the hook on the inner tube shrank and became a trigger. The inner tube itself expanded, forcing the outer tube to expand with it, until the thing had become three times its normal size. The front of the weapon had separated into a series of six quadruple-layered barrels that seemed designed for one thing: massive blasts of absolute destruction.

The tubes had effectively transformed into a twenty-four-barreled, automatic shotgun operated SOLELY on his chakra.

Naruto looked at the ferocious weapon in his hands and whistled. He'd used it many times before, but the sight of the thing always managed to impress him.

Hinata, however, was less than impressed.

"You went to our wedding… ARMED?" she asked. Naruto turned to her with a questioning expression.

"You did too, if you think about it," he said, flashing his dojutsu with a blink and shutting them off with another, "Our eyes count as extremely dangerous weapons. NEITHER of us were entirely unarmed during that ceremony. We could have killed EVERYONE in an instant if we had a good reason. Even if we didn't have them active at any point during the ceremony, they were always there in case." Hinata thought about it and turned away, choosing to pout. Naruto smiled.

"You still look really cute when you pout, Hina-chan!" he said as he turned his weapon in the direction of the crystal. Hinata smiled and blushed a bit.

Hinata watched as, for the first time in several years, Naruto began to adopt a persona he'd only used when he was EXTREMELY bored: she watched as his face began to twist, his eyes going full fox mode and his lips curling back in a demented smile. His whisker marks thickened up, extended out six inches from his face, and he leveled a crazed gaze at the mass of crystals.

When he next spoke, his voice wasn't the happy, caring, loving one Hinata knew and loved; it was one filled with a perverted desire for death and destruction, filled with twisted blood-lust and carnal insanity. His left eye twitched, and the weapon began to charge. Hinata watched, frightened, as the gun began to shine with a faint blue color… and then watched, horrified as it began to glow red AROUND the faint blue shine.

"NARUTO, NO!" she shouted… but it was too late.

With a smile that would have sent any psychiatric patient running scared into a corner, Naruto all but bellowed, "SO, YA WANNA PLAY HARDBALL, HUH? I'LL GIVE YOU A NICE, HARD BALL TO PLAY WITH! ACTUALLY, I'LL GIVE YA MORE THAN TWENTY OF 'EM! JIGOKU NO NAGAREBOSHI!"

With that, he pulled the trigger. All twenty-four barrels lit up at once, sending burning red streams of star-filled blue chakra firing out and into the crystal structure ahead.

The energy did what Naruto had hoped it would; where the attacks he'd used before had bored in and gotten stopped half-way, this attack managed to make it much deeper. The attack drove through the crystal with enough force to hit Guren inside; Naruto hadn't expected the attack to be cut off after he'd managed to hold the attack for ten seconds. As Guren uttered a guttural scream of agony, the crystal around her became frenzied; without warning, the structure began sprouting extra layers WITHIN extra layers and creating large crystal spikes to deter physical contact.

Naruto's crazed persona died in an instant as he witnessed this sudden change. With a furious roar, he threw his Chaos Scepter hard toward the ground, not even bothering to find out if it bounced off into the forest. A small chakra pulse told from Naruto's hand told him two things: one, the structure was now completely impervious to ANY kind of chakra release, as the small pulse turned into a small whip that lashed out and struck his arm… and two, the scepter disintegrated and reformed within its holster on his hip.

"Well, this is just GREAT!" he shouted, plopping down on the grass two feet away from Hinata. Hinata stood still and watched him as he sat still and slowly began breathing in long, deep breaths to calm down. A moment later, her courage returned, and, knowing he needed some help, walked over and did for him as he'd done for her.

Despite Naruto's struggles, Hinata wouldn't let him be alone. A few minutes later, Naruto finally caved when Hinata walked around behind him and wrapped her arms around his shoulders to lock over his chest and REFUSED to let go. With a light smile, he reached up both hands to take hers and squeeze them gently.

"Thanks, Hina-chan…" he said weakly. Hinata nodded.

"You would do the same for me, Naru-kun," she said happily.

"That reminds me," she said, her memory returning again, "That crystal mass is getting stronger. Apparently, from what I see, the more time you hit it, the more chakra it has to take from its internal storage, meaning she has less time to heal. However, it one uses a technique that entails a pure, concentrated burst of chakra all in one place… that crystal will wait for a signal from the user to either bulk up, or do what it just did: it absorbed your chakra, so you can't damage it anymore." Naruto cursed again.

"How could I have been so stupid? I just JUMPED, AGAIN!" he said, hoarsely whispering the last two words so he wouldn't hurt Hinata's ears.

"While we're here, forced to wait, why don't you continue the story? I think you were at the point when the Third showed up with Kakashi-san," Hinata said. Naruto nodded.

"Indeed, I believe I was!" he said with a smile, "Let's see…"

_**_  
CHAPTER 2: PSYCHO BLAST AND THE HOSPITAL**_

OP: "SOUL DYNAMITE" - ACCESS

_**~~ At the time they found me, there was not much they could do. I was unconscious from over-exertion, which is strange considering how much energy I have…**_

_**Anyway, the most they could do was take Kozu-nii and me back to the village. I was placed under observation in a top-secret wing of the hospital, reserved for only those of special upbringing. Kozu-nii was sent off to the village morgue for an autopsy. As if they couldn't figure out what had killed him just form looking at him… ~**_

_It took only a few minutes to move Naruto off the corpse, and another ten from there to move them two back to the village. While Naruto was transported to a heavily-guarded, top-class underground wing of the hospital for diagnosis and study, Kozue's corpse was moved to the village mortuary for an examination._

_Several hours later, Naruto sat on a cot in a white-washed hospital room. Over the hour he'd been awake, his tone of voice indicated that he was highly depressed, but his facial expression was a complete blank: eyes half closed, eyebrows and mouth straight and unmoving. _

_**~ I really didn't know what to think or feel anymore. I'd just lost the only remaining member of my direct family… I was devastated. Had any of the doctors thought to find out about it from me, I could have told them before they tested me. **_

_**I knew what they had to do, though, so I kept quiet and let them test me. Everything from my blood and DNA to my reflexes, eyesight and hearing were tested. I just sat on that little table and let them do what they had to do, knowing the people who wanted to protect me were outside, deciding how to approach the situation. ~**_

_Outside the room, standing behind a one-way window, Naruto was being watched by Kakashi and a tall, muscular doctor with three small scars under one eye and cropped, yet spiky light-blue hair*. _

_**~ I've still never found out much about that strange, scar-faced doctor. It was as if as soon as he'd completed his assessment of my mental state, he just… vanished. I asked Jiji-san about it afterward, and he told me that doctor had to ship off to another land to help out different people. Knowing that he was a doctor, I could understand that excuse. I just wish I can see him again someday and thank him for his help. ~**_

"_What's his condition?" Kakashi asked with a hint of worry in his voice. The doctor turned, allowing his white coat to whip around behind him._

"_Well," the doctor said, "my best diagnosis is shock. He just watched someone who knew him as family die in his arms. That's not easy for anyone to deal with, least of all a boy of his age. He'll probably carry an emotional scar for the rest of his life… but, considering how many of the villagers treat him day-in and day-out, I can't honestly say it's much different from his daily norm. This one will just be larger than the rest." Kakashi nodded._

_**~ They called it shock at the time. I thought they should have called it "mental shut-down". I didn't understand much at that point. I just wanted Kozu-nii back. ~**_

"_What can be done for him?"_

"_Strictly speaking… there's nothing we can do. All we can do is let him rest and gather himself. I hope that he'll be back up and at it like his normal self in a few days, at best. Of course, there's also the matter of his eyes…" the doctor said, trailing off as he searched his charts in search of the answer to Kakashi's next, and most anticipated, question._

_Finding it quickly, the doctor said, "Strangely enough, before being admitted, his eyes were twenty-twenty, in both eyes, in terms of his vision. After being admitted, his eyes had regressed to five-five in each eye, and were slowly progressing back up to twenty-twenty in each. It's as if something happened that messed with his vision in that forest…"_

_**~ They didn't know it yet, but the reason my eyes had regressed in strength was due to the sudden implanting of my eyes. It was different when you awakened your eyes, Hinata, because you'd trained them to reach that point; you just had a quick moment of blindness while your eyes evolved. Well, with mine, it was roughly six hours of varying levels of vision, all of which hurt my head. I couldn't see anything with any clarity at all; it was like being body-swapped with a bat and trying to use its eyes. ~**_

"_And what of the one we found with Naruto?" said the voice of an elderly male. Kakashi and the doctor spun on their heels and bowed as a man in a long white robe._

"_At ease, gentlemen. As I asked, did you find out anything about the other?" The Hokage asked. The doctor nodded._

"_We've identified the man through the Bingo Book as Kozue Namikaze, the distant second cousin of our friend inside this room. Seems he was related to our late Fourth Hokage," The doctor said, but continued as the Hokage's frustrated stare began to burn holes in his head, "A-anyways, it seems the man's eyes had been removed pre-mortem. His eyelids had sunk into his sockets. In addition, the large wound in his chest was made by a poisoned blade. We've identified the poison as the one most commonly used by Orochimaru. He must have wanted something this Kozue-san had… I also found large amounts of residual chakra in his bones, which would explain how he managed to live for so long… he was forcing his marrow to create more blood in the hopes of the wound clotting so he could find a place to rest and recover. Unfortunately, all he wound up doing was prolonging his death."_

_**~ It seemed one of the major things Kozu-nii never shared with me was that he was a professional bounty hunter; he'd been slowly working on emptying out the Bingo book, but had still managed to lose track of a number of powerful enemy shinobi. In the end, the one target he wanted to bring down most ended up being Kozu-nii's death… It's sad, in an ironic way. ~**_

"_I see…" The Hokage said, while thinking, 'Minato… why didn't you ever tell me you had family out there?'_

"_In any case," the doctor said, "the autopsy is over and we'll be burying him in secret tomorrow. As for our young charge inside, I've already informed Okami-san of his condition. He's stressed and in shock. He needs at least a few days to rest and recover before he is capable of leaving. I'll make extra certain that no one aside from myself and the nurses see him, unless you give the order to, and I will personally prepare and deliver his food at every meal to make certain no one tried to poison him while he's here. You have my word, and a doctor's word is his life."_

"_Thank you, Doctor," the Hokage said, smiling as the doctor left to see to his duties._

_**~ I was allowed to visit the sight of Kozu-nii's grave a few days later to pay my respects. Compared to the day he died, I acted… rather composed and quiet. I surprised Jiji-san… He thought I'd throw a bratty temper tantrum and loose my head. I guess I'm better at keeping calm in the face of stress and grief than others… ~**_

"_Sarutobi-sama, what are you thinking?" Kakashi asked._

"_In truth… I'm wondering if I should go see him or not… If what the doctor said is true, he should be left alone. However," Sarutobi said, "If something did happen in that forest, we need to know exactly what it was."_

"_I see… conflicting plans of action…" Kakashi said, "Though… you have to admit this was quite the twist of fate. If you hadn't sent us out there today, we wouldn't have found him and Naruto wouldn't be here right now. Now Naruto knows he's lost probably the only family member he had left… and probably knows far more than you wanted him to."_

_**~ Kakashi-san's ability to, as he phrased it, "look underneath the underneath", was always a point of admiration for me. I could never understand how he could analyze a situation in seconds from only one glance and form a plan from it. It confused me for many years. ~**_

"_You aren't suggesting that this Kozue, a complete stranger unfamiliar with our law… no, I suppose that is plausible… I should go in," Sarutobi said. With that, he knocked on the door._

_**~ That knock sounded like someone had fire a cannonball. It was loud, and I wasn't expecting it. They didn't see it, but I jumped a good three feet off that cot and cowered in the corner until Jiji-san spoke. ~**_

"_Naru-kun, it's me and Kakashi-san. May we come in?" he asked._

_**~ That relaxed me a little. I trusted him. ~**_

"_Yeah, come in," Naruto's voice said from the other side, sounding monotonous and … almost dead. Sarutobi gave Kakashi a worried look. Kakashi nodded and slid the door open. The two entered to see the young boy staring blankly at the floor. Kakashi gulped and slid the door closed._

_**~ They didn't know it at the time, but my eyes were worse than what the doctor told them. I could barely make out the shape of the room, so when they walked in, I could only make out the forms of two misshapen blobs joining the rest of the blobs in the room. ~**_

"_Naru-kun… can we ask you a couple questions?" Sarutobi asked. Naruto shrugged._

_**~ I didn't know what he expected me to say. What did he want me to do, refuse and fall asleep? ~ **_

"_What happened in the forest today?" Sarutobi asked. ~_

Naruto had completely relaxed by this point, leaning back in Hinata's arms a bit. She smiled and moved so he was sitting in her lap.

Naruto smiled and sighed.

"It's insane, now that I look back on things…" he mused, "One day I'm an impressionable, rowdy six-year-old prankster, the next I'm sitting almost blind in a hospital room recovering from intense shock. I just wanted to curl up and travel back in time to before that happened and ask to stay home for the day. Now… I'm glad I didn't know how." Hinata laughed.

"I'd have been frightened if you DID know how to time-travel, Naru-kun!" she said jokingly.

"You don't have to worry; I still don't know how. I don't think I'll EVER know," he said with a grin, "And, quite frankly, now that I have you, I don't think I even want to anymore. For all I know, I could stop myself from ever meeting Kozu-nii, and I would have remained completely ignorant of you and your feelings. THAT scares me…" As if he were actually thinking about the possibility of being without Hinata, Naruto shuddered violently.

"You're THAT averse to losing me?" Hinata asked, touched.

"Hinata, if it weren't for you, I'd be sealed in a stone cell under the Hokage Tower. I'd be a criminal," he said, knowing from experience EXACTLY what would have happened without Hinata's presence in his life.

"How long do you think we have before she comes out?" Naruto asked, sounding bored.

"I'd say you added another two hours," Hinata said matter-of-factly.

"Really? Well… might as well keep going with the story… Unless you don't want me to…" Naruto said, winking playfully at Hinata.

~ THE END… FOR NOW… ~

Hope you liked it! ^_^

For those wondering, the various technique names are thus:

Jigoku no Nagareboshi=Infernal Shooting Stars: Normally, the attack involves charging the Chaos Scepter weapon with Naruto's Star Chakra, in which case the attack is simply called "Shooting Stars". In the basic state, the attack is a simple blasting of all the built up chakra in each barrel, resulting in an explosion of twenty-four bursts of chakra that hits the foes dead on and doesn't stop until the charge is depleted. However, Naruto's "Psycho" state keeps him from thinking straight, and in this state, he adds the presence of the Fox's Youki to the mix, adding a burning, corroding nature to the attack.


	3. GALAXY SHURIKEN & BUNSHIN THEORY

[A/N]Here comes Chapter 3. Once again, if you're going to review, PLEASE make an account so I can properly reply to you. They're free to make, last I checked, so you don't have to pay for anything. ^_^ [A/N]

_**~~~DEAD CENTER OF THE FOREST OF DEATH, IN A SMALL CLEARING~~~**_

"And why would I be against listening to your stories while we wait?" Hinata teased, "They're may not all be exciting or action-packed, but They're plenty captivating nonetheless." Naruto smiled.

"Alright then… I wonder, though…" Naruto said, standing up.

"What's wrong, Naru-kun?" she asked, getting worried. Naruto smiled.

"I wonder what would happen if I tried to pump it so full of chakra that the thing overloaded and exploded around her?" he asked. Hinata stared at him as if he were truly insane.

"I honestly wouldn't try it," she said skeptically, "Normally it would be a sound strategy, given the type of technique it is, but since you've already allowed it to absorb your chakra, it wouldn't damage it; it would just absorb your chakra."

"That's what I'm saying!" Naruto said blandly, "I can't destroy it anymore, so instead of TRYING to damage it, I just feed it so much chakra that the thing overloads its storage space and explodes on its own. I may not be able to hit the thing myself anymore, but it should be perfectly able to destroy itself!" Naruto said, forming one of his signature moves: in one hand, he formed a large shuriken entirely of wind-type chakra, and then slowly began filling it with stars.

"The Hoshiton: Rasen Shuriken. One of my most favored techniques. And now, the fun begins," Naruto said.

The attack soon began shifting under Naruto's focus, slowly expanding in size until it was the size of a small building. Naruto used his other hand to produce small strings of chakra that attached to the technique and held it in place, suspended in midair. Naruto hopped off his feet and used his chakra to float around the technique, keeping up with its rapid speed as he began forming a smaller Rasen Shuriken on the end of each blade, and forming an extra on the blades of the first set. Soon, he had a massive sphere with rotating blades, each of which had a set of smaller, similar bladed spheres rotating in the reverse direction of the hub sphere, with an additional set on each of the smaller blades spinning the same direction as the larger hub. Naruto smirked wickedly as he released the chakra strings and hoisted the thing above his head.

"Let's see how you like this one, Wedding Crasher! HOSHITON: CHO KYODAI GINGA NO RASEN SHURIKEN!" he shouted, jumping with it held over his head. He was soon in position over the structure.

Hinata sensed extreme danger and used her eyes to teleport herself out of range of the attack in the nick of time.

Naruto thrust the attack into the top of the structure, whistling in appreciation as the attack rapidly sheared its way through the crystal barriers, which were easily more than fifteen in total. The attack managed to last a good five seconds before, upon making contact with the crown of Guren's head and earning another screech of pure pain, the structure went out of control, sealing up the crystal walls immediately around her head and holding the attack in place. As the crystal began sucking out the chakra in the attack, Naruto followed Hinata's lead and used his eyes to transport himself to the same place she'd gone.

He arrived in The Dimension, a sub-dimension formed of their shared chakra, to find Hinata standing five feet away, her eyes crossed in an angry glare, her arms crossed over her chest, and her left foot tapping FURIOUSLY. The pace of the tapping alone told Naruto that his new bride was IMMENSLY angry with him.

"What," she began, "was the point of THAT? You've just alerted the ENTIRE village to the situation, and now they're ALL going to come here and try to find us, or else SERIOUSLY hurt themselves trying to break that thing open!" Naruto winced as her voice raised four octaves over the course of her questioning.

"WELL? WHAT WAS THE IDEA BEHIND THAT?" Hinata shouted, her voice getting louder and shriller, causing Naruto to not only wince, but also avert his gaze.

"I-I thought I could overload the crystal with chakra and make it blow around her. I hoped we could cut off her healing by making her own technique backfire," he said sheepishly, his gaze turned to the floor.

"Was that all?" Hinata asked, sounding as if she were accusing him of something. Naruto's gaze lifted up to look her dead in the eyes.

"And what, exactly, is that supposed to mean?" He asked, feeling insulted, "What is it you want me to say, Hinata? That all of this was planned? Huh? Do you want to say that, for some reason not even I could possibly comprehend, I conspired with a KNOWN ENEMY of our village to take you away from OUR WEDDING – OUR WEDDING, HINATA! – And remove you from the equation somehow? YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I LOVE YOU! I WOULDN'T EVER DO THAT!" Naruto's voice dropped in pitch slightly and gained a level of bass. Hinata backed up a step; she hadn't exactly planned this far.

"You know how I am, Hinata!" Naruto said, the outrage in his voice becoming more and more apparent with each passing second, "You know how I feel; men who cheat on their wives or girlfriends don't deserve them in the first place! That's my policy! I've sworn to be a married man, and YOU, AND YOU ALONE, are the woman I chose for my bride. After all we've been through together, how could you even conceive of that as an option? I couldn't ever leave you! Moreover, might I remind you, since you've quite obviously forgotten, that due to the Kyuubi's chakra being a part of BOTH of us and linking us together, if one of us dies the other goes too. Remember that? It was only six months ago that it happened! You couldn't have forgotten that quickly!" As he said the last word, he felt his knees buckle and collapsed, hitting the ground on his hands and knees with tears in his eyes.

Hinata shook her head. She hadn't intended for this to turn out this way, not at all. Her only intention had been to find out what had spawned the idea behind that devastating attack that could have killed them both, and with a single slip of the tongue, had reduced her beloved Naruto to tears with an implied accusation.

The situation was rapidly turning into a massive misunderstanding.

'_Where did he get that thought come from?_' she wondered. The thought hadn't entered her mind at all beforeshe said it. She knew from over a year of being with him that he despised men who mistreated their girlfriends or wives in anyway… there was no plausible way he'd ever do that to her. He'd sooner kill himself than sink to that level.

She knew it had been a constant fear for the first two months of their relationship, but she'd shed that fear when they started seriously dating… and the first time Naruto kissed her in public, she'd seen the lengths he'd go to in order to defend her from others.

The person had made an idle, scathing remark about Hinata being "the demon's whore". Without a second's thought, Naruto had left Hinata's side, walked over to inform the unfortunate citizen that the Hokage's penalty for comments of that nature was death…, and proceeded to LIE about having been given permission to carry out that same penalty. The civilian had paled instantly and backed away, apologizing profusely. That hadn't stopped Naruto from violently twisting the man's arm around mid-arm, all but severing the man's arm at the elbow. He held the man that way for several minutes, applying a steady increase of pressure against the injured limb as he FORCED the man to apologize not to Naruto, but to Hinata.

The man spent seven minutes on his knees with his face buried in the dirt, apologizing to Hinata in pained sobs and whimpers while Naruto held his arm above his head and kept slowly twisting. When he finally let go, Naruto announced to everyone present that from that moment on, anyone who attacked Hinata in any way was going to deal with him PERSONALLY, which caused everyone to fall away from the area in terror. No one EVER dared to say anything mean-spirited or ill-mannered to the two since, because they knew Naruto was capable of more than an embarrassing punishment.

This hopeless blonde boy was willing to go to extremely physical lengths to defend her honor… so why would she think he'd leave? She couldn't understand it at all.

Naruto managed to calm himself down after a good couple minutes and stood slowly, turning to transport back to the battlefield. Hinata shook her head and rushed over, clamping her arms around his stomach and forcing his hands to stay at his sides. Naruto could feel her tears leaking into his shirt and closed his eyes.

"I'm sorry…" she cried into his back, her own knees buckling, "I didn't mean it the way it sounded… I thought… I thought that maybe you'd had another reason; like wanting to test your strength, or to see how much chakra you'd have left… I didn't…" her voice stopped there. All Naruto could hear was the sound of silent gasps and sobs. He shook his head.

'_I jumped the gun… I JUMPED THE GUN AGAIN! DAMN IT, why is this happening?'_ he asked himself, mentally cursing himself for doing this to Hinata. He slowly turned around when her grip began to weaken and slid down in front of her to wrap his arms around her and hold her close. She returned his embrace and latched on tight, almost burying her fingernails in the fabric of his suit. He sat there and let her cry until she couldn't anymore.

"_I'm sorry, Hina-chan…"_ he said, whispering softly in her ear, _"I got ahead of the issue again. I should have just left it alone and stopped talking, but I couldn't stop myself. I should have just asked you to clarify your question and go from there… and, once again, I jumped the gun and hurt you. I'm a fool and an idiot…"_ Hinata calmed down and coughed quietly.

"It's not just your fault… I should have made it clear from the start what I was asking. I was too vague…" Hinata said, her face buried in his shoulder.

"I still didn't need to be so defensive about it," Naruto said, "I could have just ASKED what you meant and left it at that. By all accounts, I SHOULD have done that, but instead I went over both our heads and screwed it all up. I'm sorry, Hina-chan. I'll work harder at thinking before letting my emotions lead me from now on." Hinata smiled a bit.

"I'm sorry too, Naru-kun… I'll try and be clearer from now on so we can keep this from ever happening again," she said. Both moved to look each other in the eyes and kissed. They relaxed in each other's arms, allowing their first argument EVER to pass like water under the bridge.

After a minute, Naruto broke away and asked, "Wait a minute… I never finished up that last story, did I?"

Hinata, still slightly dazed from the kiss, shook her head and numbly mumbled "No". She snapped back to reality when she felt Naruto shift position and move behind her. When she felt his arms gently wrap around her stomach, she smiled and leaned back against him.

"Well, since I wasn't finished, I'll continue," He said with a smile, "So… After the hospital came recovery and my entry into the Academy…"

_**_  
CHAPTER 3: GALAXY SHURIKEN AND BUNSHIN THEORY**_

OP: "SOUL DYNAMITE" - ACCESS

_**~~ For the next couple weeks, my life seemed to move by slower than a snail's crawl. My mind wasn't in anything I wanted to do, so naturally, I'd fail at whatever I tried. This included, but wasn't limited to, the academy graduation test's jutsu list. Specifically, I couldn't seem to maintain a proper Bunshin. The Henge was fine and all, but… nothing else seemed to work.**_

_**By the end of the month, I began thinking about things in a different way: I thought that if I let things keep going, my dream of being Hokage would be no more than a pipe dream. Letting what happened keep me down would kill my chances of even getting into the Academy. I couldn't let that happen. So, what could I do about it? Simple; work through my pain and strive to be better. And that's exactly what I did. ~**_

_A few months after the incident, Naruto was accepted into the Academy._

_It had taken him three weeks to work through the bulk of his anguish, but the thought of failing in his dream to be Hokage drove him on. _

_However, as many people can tell you, there are some times in life where things just DON'T go the way you'd hoped._

_It hadn't taken him longer than fifteen seconds on his first day to figure out where everyone stood in the class, and who everyone was. He even had a nickname for almost all of them, drawn from a year of his life where he'd enjoyed watching a program in the theaters about people who transformed into colorful suits of armor and fought off monsters._

_First, there was Sakura Haruno, a pink-haired girl he'd chased after for a year-an-a-half before his incident. After seeing her with new eyes, however, he realized exactly what she was: A FAKE. The poor girl hid who she really wanted to be just so she could fit in with the popular group. Not only that, but her voice was so loud that the first time he tried to greet her after his arrival in class, she'd nearly blown out his eardrum with a disgusted scream of "WHY THE HELL ARE YOU HERE?" For that reason, Naruto had began referring to as "Banshee Pink"._

_Next, her immediate superior in the Sasuke Fan-Club, Ino Yamanaka. Despite being a fellow blonde, albeit a much brighter shaded one, he could easily tell where HER loyalties lay. He could tell that with all the fawning over Sasuke, he'd never be able to ask her for ANY form of favor. Therefore, he'd started calling her "Useless Yellow", much to her annoyance and everyone else's enjoyment._

_Tenten Takeshi was another of the girls in the class, but, like only one other, a young Hinata Hyuuga, Tenten didn't affiliate herself with the fan-club AT ALL. In fact, most people who knew her at all knew she was an extreme weapons fanatic, often bringing several sealed scrolls FULL of them to school to use as threat material in case ANYONE tried to bother her. It was for this reason that she and Naruto got along rather well, and thus, with her permission, Naruto had taken to calling her "Brownie", or, if he were feeling especially happy on any given day, he'd call her "Buns" to fluster her. She didn't seem to mind._

_Next was Hinata Hyuuga, the eternally shy indigo-haired girl who stayed mostly to the back of the class. She barely spoke a word to anyone, except an apology if she got in someone's way in the hall. This bothered Naruto for several reasons, but mostly because ALL of these incidents weren't Hinata's fault at all; the fan-club girls would purposefully knock into her and make her drop whatever she was carrying. Naruto didn't interact with her much, and therefore had no nickname for her. However, he did enjoy sneaking long, unseen glances at the pale-eyed girl, making sure to look away long before she noticed his gaze._

_This, of course, left him with the absolutely, undeniably STUNNING cast of other boys in the class, starting with the class "big shot", a term many used in the broadest sense. Kiba Inuzuka liked to believe he was a tough, macho guy, but he'd managed to prove otherwise after engaging Naruto in a brief practice spar in class one day. During this spar, which had soon devolved into an all-out brawl, Naruto had managed to get in a solid punch to the boy's jaw, which had sent Kiba spinning back several steps. When Kiba, who still had plenty of fuel left in his tank, reached his hand up to check his mouth and pulled away blood-covered digits, his eyes had rolled up in his head… and the boy had fainted on the spot. It was no surprise to ANYONE when Naruto started calling Kiba "Wet Mutt"._

_Shikamaru Nara, being a high intellectual, soon found a good source of entertainment in Naruto, who spared no expense in many senses to alleviate the pineapple-headed boy's ample boredom; it was because of their friendship that Shikamaru let it slide whenever Naruto called him "Pineapple Cortex". In fact, it even made the bored-as-all-hell boy laugh on occasion, which made Naruto smile._

_In both a literal AND figurative sense, Naruto gave Shikamaru's other friend, Choji Akimichi, who was more than just a LITTLE plump. No one was EVER brave enough to call Choji "FAT", or even say the word around him… well, no one except Naruto, who always made sure to present Choji with a peace offering of a bag of barbecue chips. Therefore, Choji simply smiled and took it in stride whenever Naruto called him "Fat Boy". _

_Naruto developed an instinctual habit of avoiding Rock Lee at any and EVERY opportunity. The boy and his teacher Might Gai were known as freaks all over the village, and Naruto could EASILY see why. Between the green jumpsuits, orange leg warmers, bowl-cut hairstyles and THE THICKEST EYEBROWS NARUTO HAD EVER SEEN, it was obvious some strange things happened whenever the two were involved. Therefore, Naruto had only one thing to say any time Lee approached… "GET AWAY FROM ME, FREAKY BROWS!"_

_Naruto also avoided Neji Hyuuga, Hinata's cousin and half of the class's "Brooder Duo". However, where the other, one Sasuke Uchiha, believed he had nothing to prove and NEVER trained for ANYTHING, Neji believed he had EVERYTHING to prove and trained at ALL hours of the day in an effort to improve himself. Naruto silently referred to Neji as "Face Crater", but only because of what happened the first time Neji and Kiba had fought. As expected, Kiba had lost, but, as opposed to his forfeit at Naruto's hands, Neji waited until Kiba was within reach, grabbed him by the neck, and forced him into a small crater the size of Kiba's head… which Kiba had made solely with the impact of his head with the ground. Kiba had spent three weeks in hospital recovering from a fractured skull. From time to time, the boy still complained about massive headaches._

_Next to last on Naruto's list was Shino Aburame, a silent boy who delved a little too deep into the world of logic for Naruto's liking. Despite the boy's heavily analytic speech and inability to act like a normal preteen, Naruto had struck it off quite well with Shino after some of Shino's kikaichu took a liking to his chakra. As such, Naruto was the ONLY one Shino trusted with a secret: Shino, unlike many other members of his clan, had been declared blind at birth, and used his chakra and kikaichu as a means of getting from place to place. Due to this, Naruto refused to give Shino a nickname, feeling it would be taken as an insult. Shino understood and didn't press for one; frankly, he felt it was better that way._

_Finally, the last of the year's students, the famed Sasuke Uchiha, the only survivor of the Uchiha Massacre. The boy used his status to obtain and do much anything he pleased, believing that the "last Uchiha could walk where he pleased". He and Naruto had butted heads on many occasion, and NEVER saw eye to eye; despite this, the two built a sort of friendly rivalry between them. Whenever Naruto wasn't off studying, or Sasuke wasn't busy sitting under a tree perfecting his "Badass Brooder" expression, the two would strike out against each other and see who was stronger. Surprisingly, Sasuke only managed to beat Naruto once, because by the time Sasuke had realized something was wrong, he'd already nearly suffocated Naruto to death by holding the blonde's legs crossed in the air and using his feet to hold Naruto's head away while yelling for him to concede defeat. Despite this, Sasuke constantly believed Naruto won that scuffle. With all of this in mind, Naruto could only find a single, fitting nickname that would constantly rile up the raven-haired boy: "EMO BLACK"._

_On this particular day, about a year-and-a-half into his classes, Naruto was sitting at the back of the class, laying his head on his desk silently as he waited quietly for their teacher, Umino Iruka, to arrive. He'd spent the entire night staying awake to try and complete a Bunshin, and with increasingly promising results. Despite this, however, the fact remained that he'd stayed up ALL night, and had only been informed of the time when his bedroom alarm clock began screeching from across the flat, informing him that he would be late for school in five minutes. He'd bolted out the door without any regard for his books or food, and had stumbled into class looking worse for wear. All he wanted was even a few short minutes of sleep before Iruka showed up._

_However, he still had to deal with the Sasuke Fan-Club, who seemed to take greater joy in their activities this day than most others, making it almost a spoken law that they had to raise their respective voices another octave whenever one of them spoke over another. By the time Naruto was about to drift off, he was jarred awake once more by the deafening racket. Soon, he couldn't take it anymore, and his voice betrayed him in all but thought._

_**~ Even to this day, I'll never understand what they all saw in that emo-teme. But still, they were FAR too annoying. ~**_

_**- Why did you never give ME a nickname, Naru-kun? –**_

_**~ It was because of how often we spoke to each other. When we were in the academy, you never approached me, so I took it to mean you wanted to be left alone. You were always really quiet and shy, too… I didn't want to risk having anything happen because I didn't know how to handle the situation properly. ~**_

_**- I see. Well, I can forgive you on those grounds, then. –**_

_**~I'm glad. Now, while we sit here smiling at each other, I should continue the story.**_

_**So, Like I said, a night spent studying instead of sleeping had made me slightly cranky, and VERY exhausted. After all that screaming, I just HAD to say SOMETHING. ~**_

"_What did I do to deserve this fate?" Naruto mused aloud, though more under his breath than out loud, "I stay up more than twenty-four hours studying up on hand seals and jutsu to prepare for our mid-term examinations… And what do I get? NOW I'm being forced to stay awake even LONGER because a group of half-wit harpies can't spare five minutes of their day NOT sinking their screeching beaks and talons into SASUKE, OF ALL PEOPLE! Kami above, my life just sucks out loud today," Naruto said aloud, not even caring if anyone heard him. _

_Unfortunately, the entire fan club heard him and walked over. Ino stepped up and grabbed Naruto by his collar, yanking him roughly from his seat, and slapped him hard across the face._

"_What'd you say, BAKA?" Ino, asked. Naruto raised his gaze just enough to meet her glare with one of his own._

_**~ THAT tore it. I was fine leaving her alone, but ONE off-hand comment nets me a slap in the face? Nuh-uh, I don't think so. ~**_

_Grabbing Ino's wrist in his left hand, Naruto applied just enough pressure to make her let go and idly sat back in his seat._

"_First off, stop glaring at me like that; you'll make yourself look fifty if you keep it up any longer," he said, smiling to himself when Ino blushed crimson and looked away, "And second, I said I'd like to get some sleep. I'm surprised you even managed to hear ANYTHING I said! However, had you BOTHERED to listen to EVERYTHING instead of JUST my comments about you and your little girl gang, you'd know I stayed up all night researching hand seals and jutsu, only to be denied even a few minutes of rest because you and the rest of your troupe have to dote on the Uchiha kid. Seriously, how dumb are you all? He's no better than the rest of us. He can't even make a solid Bunshin yet!"_

_This attracted said Uchiha's attention, and as Sasuke stood to push his way through the throng, he glared at Naruto, saying, "Repeat that last statement for me. I don't think I heard you right."_

_Naruto shifted his gaze to the raven-haired boy in front of him and sighed._

_**~ I hated that jackass. Even to this day, I hate him. Nevertheless, despite that, I respect him. Even though he was weaker than I was, he was ALMOST at my level. ~**_

"_Fine, since you appear DEAF as well as LAME," Naruto said, boredom dripping like honey from his voice, "I said that you aren't any better than the rest of us hopefuls JUST because you came from the Uchiha clan. If you knew who MY father was, you'd be recoiling in despair of how hopeless you are. I'm not allowed to tell you who my father is, but I'll let YOU try to figure that one out. Right now, I'd like to catch a few minutes of rest before-"_

"_GOOD MORNING, CLASS!" a voice said, signaling the arrival of a happy, smiling, brown-haired man with a visible scar across his nose and cheeks: their teacher. Naruto raised his head, a stunned, unbelieving look growing on his face before his head sagged, slamming HARD into his desk._

_**~ I couldn't believe it… I'd wasted my only chance at even a few minutes of rest by arguing with Sasuke and his fangirls. That was the ONLY thing I could think of to do. ~**_

"_DAMN IT!" he shouted, slamming his head into the desk a few more times. Sasuke and his fan club stared at their classmate a few times before scampering off to their seats._

_**~ And OH, how my head hurt for hours after that… Not one of my brighter moment, given how tired I was. ~**_

_As the class progressed, Naruto found himself less able to focus, and slipping into nigh-unconsciousness every other minute. Finally, about half an hour in, he lost it and let his head let the desk quietly._

"_Alright, who would like to explain to the class the concept behind the Bunshin technique? Is anyone at all interested? … NARUTO, WAKE UP!" Iruka shouted, throwing a chalk-board brush at the sleeping blonde boy. The brush hit the crown of his head, and Naruto shot awake with renewed vigor._

_**~ I normally kept my guard up, even in my sleep. So, to be hit by something, even an object as mundane as a chalkboard eraser was an INSTANT freak-out moment. ~**_

"_WHO-WHAT-WHERE-WHEN-WHY-HOW-HOLY-CRAP-WE'RE-BEING-ATTACKED?" he shouted, flailing his arms about in a desperate attempt to ward off the imaginary attackers, only to find his face meeting the floor moments later as he fell from his chair. Sitting up and holding his head, he looked up at the frustrated look on his teacher's face._

_**~ I didn't know what else to do, you know? Caught completely off-guard, and completely unawares. Making a fool of myself by accident was just a bonus for the class. ~**_

"_Sorry, Sensei, I didn't sleep much last night… I stayed up all night reading and practicing chakra control and jutsu. I'm JUST," Naruto said, making an almost complete circle with his index finger and thumb, "THIS side of finishing off a standard Bunshin. ALMOST had it before my alarm went off and I rushed out the door to get to school." Iruka looked at the spiky-headed blonde boy in wonder._

_**~ I like to consider that revenge for Iruka-sensei catching me with my pants down. Give him a little bomb of his own to handle, you know? ~**_

"_You… you're almost DONE learning the Bunshin?" Iruka asked. Naruto nodded._

"_Well… I suppose you'd be in a position to explain it to the class then?" Iruka asked. Naruto nodded and, pushing himself up off the floor, stood to speak._

_**~ I don't really know why he asked. I TOLD him I was almost done working on it, so why would he ask me again? At the time, I was thinking, 'Well, I shouldn't keep them waiting.' ~**_

"_Basically speaking," Naruto said, "The concept of the Bunshin technique is to create an almost identical copy of yourself using your chakra and your surroundings. In fact, using the technique in varying environments can help you learn a multitude of versions of the technique, and each version is useful in its own right. For instance, Mizu, or Water, Bunshin are useful for dodging attacks and fleeing battle, as they allow you to substitute yourself with a clone made of water. Rai, or Lightning Bunshin are useful for attacking WHILE fleeing a battle, as the electrical discharge that comes when the Bunshin is dispelled can be used to electrocute the foe. I've only ever HEARD about a method called the … Shadow, or Kage Bunshin, which I GUESS would use the wielder's shadow to create identical clones, and that was from my ANBU friend… Let me think… AH! A Bunshin made from Doton, or Earth Release chakra, is useful for not only blocking attacks, but trapping foes as well, since the clone doesn't exactly dispel, but remains rooted in place, leaving the enemy open to an attack afterward. That, of course, is just the theory behind it. I'm still working on the practical application."_

_Iruka and half the class, including Ino, who'd verbally attacked him before, stared at the blonde boy in awe. Sasuke, however, had a wicked smirk plastered on his face._

_**~ And then came Sasuke with another of his show-off-ish questions. Had to look like a smart person despite his inexperience. ~**_

"_Oi, dobe…" Sasuke said, "Did your research glean any information on, say… a Honoo, or Flame clone?" Naruto gave the boy a bewildered gaze._

_**~ I should have just clocked him out. Waiting for the inevitable was fun and all, but if he hadn't tried he wouldn't have MADE me deck him for it later. ~ **_

"_Why in the name of all things NINJA would you EVER think of that as an option? You can't control fire to that extent! Water, electricity, earth, even your own shadow… you can control those to a useful extent. But fire… DON'T YOU EVER TRY THAT! You're more than likely to wind up in the hospital because the thing backfired on you!" Naruto said. He walked from his desk to right next to Sasuke and pulled him up by the collar of his shirt with one hand._

"_If I ever find out you tried to pull off a Fire Bunshin, I'll come after you after you healed and put you RIGHT BACK in the hospital, understand? I don't want to see anyone in this room injured because you decided to try and show off. GOT IT?" Naruto said with a warning tone. Sasuke gave him a sardonic grin._

"_And what would you do if I managed to make it work?" Sasuke challenged. Naruto raised his other hand and slapped the boy across the face._

_**~ I will NEVER understand why he felt the need to show off and make himself look better than everyone else. I don't even think I want to know what he was thinking. ~**_

"_DID YOU NOT EVEN HEAR ME?" Naruto asked, his voice gaining a dark, foreboding tone, "DON'T EVEN TRY IT, UNLESS YOU WANT ME TO PUT YOU IN THE HOSPITAL!" Sasuke looked into Naruto's blue eyes and saw them slowly turning red._

"_A-ALRIGHT, I WON'T TRY IT! NOW PUT ME DOWN! DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHO I AM?" Sasuke asked. Naruto slapped him again and dropped him in his seat._

_**~ What kind of stupid question was that to ask? EVERYONE and their DAMN CAT knew who he was. He wouldn't shut up about it. ~**_

"_How can I NOT know who you are? You walk around announcing your status of being "THE LAST UCHIHA" every minute of EVERY SINGLE DAY! I have to carry a bottle of MIGRAINE PILLS in my pocket every day just to be able to handle hearing you TALK!" Naruto said, walking back to his seat. As he sat down, he took one last look at Sasuke and closed his eyes._

"_Like I said before Sensei came in, you aren't better than the rest of us JUST because you're the last of your clan. You want to know something, SASUKE? I watched a cousin I didn't even know was alive DIE, IN MY ARMS. Compared to simply walking into a room and finding your parents dead, MY situation puts YOURS to SHAME! So stop thinking everyone should be kissing your ass all the damn time!" Naruto said, seconds before his head sagged again and slammed into the desk. A second later, soft breathing could be heard, and Iruka resumed the lesson as if nothing had happened.~_

Naruto stopped abruptly and turned around in place.

"CRAP!" he exclaimed, "WE FORGOT TO SEE HOW MUCH DAMAGE I MANAGED TO DO!" He said, grabbing Hinata by the hand before both vanished in a flicker of light.

Seconds later, they arrived back in the forest. Naruto did a quick scan for any other chakra signatures, and found they were still alone. Looking at the crystal structure, his anxious expression faded. With a less-than-impressed look on his face, he did the only thing he could think of to do…

…He walked to a nearby tree and slammed his head into the trunk, putting a deep dent in the wood. He continued to do this for a minute, cursing with each successive slam.

"DAMN!", SLAM "DAMN IT!", SLAM "DAMN IT ALL!", SLAM "DAMN-" SLAM "-THIS-" SLAM "-ALL-" SLAM "-TO-" SLAM "-HELL!" SLAM.

SLAM!

**SLAM!**

By the time Naruto opened his eyes, he was literally seeing red; the continuous slams had opened a large gash in his forehead, which was now bleeding profusely into his eyes. Not only that, but he'd managed to not only break the tree off the stump, but also propel it through three more with his last slam.

He allowed himself to fall onto his back. He lay there and allowed gravity to pull the blood down the sides of his head while his chakra worked quickly to close and heal his head wound.

Hinata dropped down on her knees next to him with a look of "I told you so" written all over her face. Naruto looked her dead in the eyes and sighed.

"Go ahead, Hina-chan… say it. I deserve it," he said. He closed his eyes… only for them to slam open two seconds later when she leaned over and kissed him. She pulled away moments later, leaving him dazed with a blissful look on his face.

"You DO deserve it… but you just took care of it yourself. I'm not going to add insult to injury, Naru-kun," She said with a smile. Naruto smiled back and closed his eyes.

Suddenly, for no reason at all, he heard music pop into his head, and for no reason, he reached his right hand up to cup her cheek and smiled. Hinata felt herself melt a little as he began to speak the lyrics both had been preparing to dance to at the reception:

"Have I told you lately that I love you  
Have I told you there's no one else above you  
Fill my heart with gladness  
take away all my sadness  
ease my troubles that's what you do."

Hinata smiled and leaned down to kiss him again as, inexplicably, the music to the song began to play in her head. They stayed there for almost three minutes after she pulled away, softly humming along to the song as the music synced in their heads, wide smiles plastered across their faces.

~ THE END… FOR NOW… ~

Hope you liked it! ^_^ By the way, in terms of Naruto's nicknames, a box of cookies to the first person to guess what show those names came from! ^_^

For those wondering, the various technique names are thus:

Hoshiton: Chou Kyodai Ginga no Rasen Shuriken=Ultra Supermassive Galaxy Spiral Shuriken: As described, it's a massive Hoshiton: Rasen Shuriken, fully loaded with stars for added cutting power. On the tip of each blade is a another Hoshiton: Rasen Shuriken, half the size of the original and loaded with stars. On the ends of each of the blades of the smaller ones is another full set of regular-sized Rasen Shuriken, once again loaded with stars. The first set of extras rotates counter-clockwise to the main hub, and the second set rotates the same direction as the main hub. It can be said, as this is an attack Naruto thought up on the fly, that NO ONE will be able to escape the dread destruction of this attack. The reasons for Naruto and Hinata being able to survive the attack are listed in the previous chapter.


	4. IDLE THOUGHTS & THE PASSING

[A/N]Here comes Chapter 4.

Just as a warning to everyone, this chapter expands on a few points of interest that I'd left blank in the original one-shot. It also becomes a little dark toward the end and… delves into the "body horror" department before it tapers off. Just to make sure everyone's forewarned. This chapter is also the first time Hinata ever takes over storytelling, if only for a short time.

So, once again, if you're going to review, PLEASE make an account so I can properly reply to you. They're free to make, last I checked, so you don't have to pay for anything. ^_^ [A/N]

* * *

_**~~~DEAD CENTER OF THE FOREST OF DEATH, IN A SMALL CLEARING~~~**_

Naruto stared at the crystal structure for a good five minutes before looking back at Hinata with a shake of his head.

"Naru-kun, what are you thinking about?" she asked, worried.

"I was just trying to think if my ocular techniques might be of any use in this situation… However, seeing that thing as it is now, it's not a smart idea to try anything further. All that can be done is … Hang on a minute…" Naruto looked back at the crystal.

"Hina-chan… Didn't you say that thing is rooted into the ground?" Naruto asked, a thought coming to mind.

"Yes… she has thick roots of chakra inside the ground beneath the structure that keeps it firmly planted in place. Furthermore, the roots are intertwined with each other, so even if you COULD get to on, you'd never be able to figure out which one is going in which direction," Hinata said, "Why? What did you have in mind?"

"What if we could make the roots useless by levitating the entire structure in midair?" Naruto asked. Hinata thought about it.

"That could work… but isn't your control of Doton is horrible at best, right?" she asked, the question shooting like a bullet through Naruto's mind.

"Uh… yeah… I forgot about that… I wouldn't be able to do anything here anyway…" he said, finding himself frustrated once again.

"Don't worry about it…" Hinata said, cuddling closer to him, "Even if she IS mostly, if not completely, healed by the time the jutsu ends, we'll already be back at maximum power. She STILL won't be able to keep up with us, no matter HOW much she heals. We'll be fine; don't worry!" Hinata smiled up at Naruto, who sighed and smiled back.

"I know…" he said, defeated, "I just wanted to end this quickly so we could go on our honeymoon. She stopped the wedding JUST as we were about to cut the cake…"

Hinata smiled.

"Don't worry; I'm sure they found a way to save it. We probably have more than half of that monstrous thing left at the house anyway!" Hinata said, keeping an optimistic tone in her voice, "But I do agree. The faster we can finish this, the sooner we can leave and get some private time. Unfortunately, your last little stunt extended our waiting time by twenty-four hours, so we have a little over a full day to wait before she emerges. It's not safe to leave her here…"

Naruto nodded, settled back into a thoughtful expression and mused, "Well, while we wait… I may as well continue from where we left off. I believe that would have been just before Emo-teme's "Exploding Clone" debacle…"

* * *

_**HAPTER: IDLE THOUGHTS, BURNING SENSATIONS & THE PASSING**_

**OP: "SOUL DYNAMITE" - ACCESS**

* * *

_**~ I fully expected Sasuke to try and perform a Honoo Bunshin, but it still surprised me when he tried. After all the trouble I went to in trying to dissuade him, he tried anyway. Still, that day was a shock… and yet, it was EXTREMELY fun. ~ **_

_Only two months after Naruto's surprise mini-lecture on Bunshin theory in class, Sasuke did what everyone was afraid he would do: he tried to one-up Naruto by attempting to create a Honoo Bunshin. Naruto had given Sasuke points for daring and for how far he had made the technique go… but had to take them back for Sasuke's disregard for Naruto's warning as well as Sasuke's audacity in attempting it to begin with._

_Naruto had been walking through the shopping district alone one day, ignoring mumbles and whispers of "demon brat" and "demon spawn"; he already knew what the civilians were referring to quite well. However, when a powerful explosion rocked the ground from halfway across the village, Naruto knew what had to be done. He knew he was lacking in skill at the time, but that failed to prevent him from taking to the rooftops at speeds of which most academy students were incapable._

_By following the steadily rising pillar of smoke and the smell of burned flesh, Naruto was the first to arrive at the scene, which, to his dismay, was the backyard of the Uchiha Compound's main house. He was, therefore, not that surprised to see an extremely charred Sasuke, turned black from soot and covered in burns, lying on his back in the middle of the lawn. Naruto rushed in and tried to help the boy, but was brushed away as the raven-haired preteen struggled to his feet and slowly went through the hand seals for a Katon jutsu._

"_KATON: GOKAKYU NO JUTSU!" Sasuke shouted loudly, yet weakly, as he released a powerful burst of flame from his mouth. He crossed over his chest and began using constant streams of chakra to shape the flames into a more humanoid form. Naruto watched, dumbfounded, as the flames began to shift in position and settled into more human-like features. The likeness of Sasuke's form slowly emerged, followed by the flames slowly changing colors from orange and red to solid blue and black for his clothing. The areas where skin was present slowly changed to a pale peach-like color. Soon, the head set into place, the flames forming into Sasuke's signature hairstyle and facial features. Sasuke smiled as his flame clone's eyes opened slowly, revealing the same near-jet-black irises Sasuke had._

_Sasuke's clone moved slowly, as if limping on a broken leg, and soon arrived in front of Naruto with that same, asinine smirk Naruto hated._

"_I WIN, DOBE!" The clone said before it began expanding rapidly. Seeing the danger, Naruto tackled Sasuke to the ground, forcing his arms out of his concentrative position as they hit the ground. Just as they hit the dirt some five feet away, the clone reached critical levels and exploded violently, tearing a large hole out of the backyard and sending large tongues of fire lashing out everywhere. Several large cinders landed on Naruto's boots and immediately burst into flames, setting Naruto's feet alight. By the time The ANBU arrived, the fire had died out, but Naruto had managed to keep the flames on his person controlled at his feet._

_Given his extreme healing factor, Naruto was able to walk again, albeit gingerly, only a few days after the incident, but was kept in hospital for two weeks for observation. During that time, he was told the fire had burned many of the muscles and tendons in his feet, rendering him unable to run for prolonged periods or jump from high places without severe damage to his legs from the ankle down. Naruto nodded; this was a considerable set-back to his career and dream, but he'd make it work somehow. The current Hokage was a seventy-something-year-old man with aging bones, and yet he was able to fight like the strongest Jonin they had, if not BETTER. If Hiruzen Sarutobi, the man regarded as the "Strongest Shinobi of All Time" was able to fight that well, Naruto would do the same._

_A month later, Naruto was present when Sasuke was released from hospital, still looking worse for wear form the incident. Naruto had proceeded to pelt the Uchiha survivor with rocks; he didn't let up until one of them caught the boy on the chin. This had caused him to drop to the ground in pain. Naruto then pounced on Sasuke, carrying out the threat he'd posed if Sasuke ever tried what he had; for roughly two minutes Naruto stayed attached to Sasuke's chest by his knees, pummeling the boy's face relentlessly until Sasuke stopped trying to defend himself and lay limp. Naruto then picked him up and carried him back into the hospital, placing him back in his bed. He stayed only long enough to give Sasuke one more punch to the face, and then promptly hopped out of the open window and walked home._

_Barely a week-and-a-half later, while again trying to nap before class, another incident arose. Naruto was forced to break up a small fight between Ino and Sakura, who were arguing over which of them liked -or loved- Sasuke more. Naruto had stepped in and stopped the feud in one feel sweep by giving the two girls what the class had dubbed the "SCARE FACE". The look consisted of Naruto casting a minor genjutsu that showed both girls a demented "Cheshire Cat" grin, but as his mouth curved up to form the grin, the corners of his mouth tore open up to his ears. The skin dried and rapidly fell off, leaving massive scarring along his vanished lips, while simultaneously showing his teeth, which rapidly cracked and turned a glaring shade of mustard yellow. His eyes remained set in a twisted, predatory grin, but his eyebrows were bent downward as if he were giving a glare. _

_It was a face that, thankfully, Iruka had missed seeing. However, the students constantly reminded each other about it, using it as a threat to keep each other quiet so as not to bother Naruto._

_**~ It still surprises me to this day that I was able to keep that look from Iruka up until a few years ago. Even more surprising, though, is what Jiji-san actually did following the incident. ~**_

_Now, only a short few months after his warning to Sasuke, Naruto was sitting at the front of the class in Sasuke's old seat. This had happened the week after Naruto had been released from hospital, ordered by the Hokage himself due to Sasuke's stunt. It was for this reason that Naruto sat smiling at the front of the class, while Sasuke, sitting in Naruto's old seat, shot daggers at him all day through constant glares. Naruto didn't care._

_Iruka walked in right before the bell. To everyone's surprise, a piece of blue cloth hung from one pocket of his flak jacket. All eyes were suddenly on Iruka; everyone knew what that cloth was, and almost everyone knew who would be receiving it._

_**~ I knew the hitae-ate wasn't for Sasuke right away. Seeing as no one else was close by when Sasuke attempted the clone, anyone could tell it was meant for ONE person: ME. ~**_

"_Alright, students," Iruka said with a beaming smile, "today we're making a little detour before we start our lesson. Word of one of you has reached Hokage-sama's ears, and he's deemed that specific person ready for a jump-start on their ninja career."_

_**~ I wasn't surprised when Sasuke acted as if he was better. It was his thing, after all; I just expected him to be a little more humble that he was. I guess I was hoping for too much. ~**_

_Sasuke smirked haughtily and stood, then walked down the steps, saying, "FINALLY! Hokage-sama has noticed my efforts! So long, losers; I'll be sure not t miss you when I reach jonin in two years! Oh, that reminds me: I'd suggest trying to catch up to me if I were you, Naru-dobe. You always act like you're better, but the Elite Uchiha won out over you after all!" Naruto shook his head._

_Iruka looked at Sasuke and said, "Actually, Sasuke, you're being held back a year due to that explosion stunt you pulled. I'd suggest you sit back down." Sasuke, looked shocked, ran up and grabbed Iruka's collar._

_**~ I Understand Sasuke had his problems, but to throw the tantrum he did was just embarrassing. Even Itachi would have been embarrassed seeing how Sasuke acted. ~**_

"_WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, HOLDING ME BACK? I'M AN ELITE UCHIHA! I DESERVE TO JUMP AHEAD OF EVERYONE HERE, ESPECIALLY THAT SMART-ASS DOBE SITTING IN __**MY**__ SEAT!" Sasuke ranted, before a single finger pressed into his stomach. Feeling the wind rush from his lungs, Sasuke slumped to the ground as Iruka walked past him._

"_Naruto, take this. By the way, congratulations on your promotion; I look forward to finding out which of our jonin you'll get for a sensei!" Iruka said, smiling as he pulled the hitae-ate from his pocket and handing it to the spiky-headed blonde boy. Naruto smiled and stood to tie the band around his forehead. All the boys started clapping, and soon the girls followed suit. _

_**~ It touched me to hear everyone clapping. However, no amount of mental preparation I'd done for that moment could have prepared me for what followed. ~**_

_However, as soon as he pulled the knot tight, Naruto's smile vanished. His eyes shot open as far as they could physically go, his breathing became erratic, and one eye closed half-way._

"_Whoa, what?" he mumbled, steadying himself on the desk. Iruka noticed something was off._

_**~ It was the most painful thing I'd ever experienced in my life… there's no way to describe it with words. Still, you experienced it yourself, so you know what I'm talking about, right Hina-chan? ~**_

_**- I know… once I felt that for myself, it scared me thinking of how you managed to maintain for as long as you did. I couldn't even scratch five seconds; you made it ten. Then again, the worst physical pain I'd ever endured was getting beaten by Hanabi-nee-chan day after day. –**_

_**~ It always pissed me off to see how the Hyuuga elders treated you… It's a good thing Tsunade-baa-chan let me challenge them to a death match. It surprised me, but definitely not more than how easily they went down. They claimed to be god-like in power, but they collapsed faster than matchsticks in a fire.**_

_**Nevertheless, I digress; where was I? OH! That's right. Iruka sensei stepped in about that time. ~**_

"_What's wrong, Naruto?" Iruka asked, trying to help his student. Seconds later, Naruto hit the ground on his knees, hands curled into claws that held his head as his eyes clenched shut. Screams of pain ripped through the air for a full minute before Naruto's eyes once again shot open. His entire body seemed to go limp as his arms slumped to his side, seconds before he himself slumped onto his side._

_Naruto could barely hear a thing as his vision blurred and faded to black; however, two voices managed to break through the mire. Through the pain, Naruto could hear Sasuke calling for a med-nin and Hinata begging him not to leave her._

'_What? Never would have guessed that Hinata-san and the teme would be calling out to me…' Naruto thought as he lost consciousness. ~_

_**~ I don't remember anything from there until I woke up, so anything further is blank. ~**_

_**- I see… Well, as you're only ever too willing to tell me stories when I ask, maybe I should fill in the blanks for you… seeing as I was there, and all… - **_

_**~ I won't stop you if you want to, Hina-chan… I know those aren't exactly pleasant memories for you. ~**_

_**- And the ones you been telling me are any more pleasant for you? Don't worry about it, Naru-kun. Sit back and let me tell YOU a little tale… - **_

_- For Naruto, the situation ended there. However, for those around his motionless body, things only continued to escalate._

_**- It was strange to watch Sasuke jump into action as he did… I thought for sure he'd let you lay there, but apparently he considered you as more than a friend. -**_

_As Iruka struggled to move the young boy, whose body had become stiffer than a corpse, Sasuke stepped in, lifted his rival onto his shoulder and made a run for the hospital. Iruka couldn't understand how Sasuke had managed more strength than he had…_

_**- Iruka-sensei was slow that day… he barely even noticed me leaving the classroom. -**_

"_I must be getting rusty… Too much teaching, not enough missions," Iruka mused silently, idly noting the fading cream coloring of Hinata's coat as the violet-haired girl disappeared through the door as mach speed. He turned to the rest of the class and looked around as each individual student gave him a confused look._

"_WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT? GET BACK TO YOUR STUDIES! YOU'D BETTER BE MORE THAN AMPLE PREPARRED FOR A SERIES OF POP QUIZZES WHEN I RETURN!" He shouted, prompting each and every student to resume his or her studies in a frantic manner. Iruka smiled sadistically as he rushed out of the room and followed his two rogue students on their path to the hospital._

_**- As if we were on a mission, the three of us tore through the village until we reached the hospital. It didn't take us that long, given how fast we were running, but it felt like forever. - **_

_Several minutes later, the doctors had admitted Naruto into emergency and had begun performing tests to determine his ailment. However, despite their most valiant efforts, they simply could not discern what was making the young boy the way he was._

_It was several hours later as Iruka, Hinata, and Sasuke sat around Naruto's cot in the emergency ward, that the unthinkable happened._

_Iruka looked up from his silent prayers for the boy to awaken to notice that Naruto's eyes that shot open and remained opened as far as they could go. Hinata and Sasuke were next to realize the problem and looked up just in time for Naruto to unleash an otherworldly scream of pain as his body burst into flames._

_**- At first, I couldn't understand what was happening, so there was little I could do but watch as you began to burn. -**_

"_SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION?" Sasuke shouted, reaching for the extinguisher in the corner of the room, "THAT DOESN'T EVEN EXIST! YOU AREN'T GETTING OUT OF THIS THAT EASILY, DOBE!" _

_With that, the raven-haired boy began furiously spraying the foamy material all over Naruto's body. However, within five minutes of constant spraying, he'd exhausted the supply of foam in the canister… and Naruto's body was only burning faster than before. Sasuke watched in horror as patches of Naruto's skin began to flake off and float up into the air._

_**- May Kami bless Iruka-sensei for trying so hard to take charge. I hope we get the invitation to his wedding BEFORE he passes on… It'd be sad for him to end his lineage with himself. -**_

"_SASUKE, GET THE DOCTORS!" Iruka shouted. The boy nodded furiously as he tore from the room._

_**- I was terrified… I didn't know what to do. I loved you so much; I didn't want to be left without you… Don't get me wrong; I do still love you as I did then, if not much more. However, at the time, I acted on impulse and instinct. -**_

_Iruka tried to figure out what was going on, but soon had to cut his thoughts short when Hinata jumped onto the bed and clamped her arms as best she could around Naruto's chest._

"_NARUTO-KUN, DON'T LEAVE ME! TAKE ME WITH YOU!" she shouted, crying hard into the boy's orange shirt… which, as Iruka soon noticed, wasn't burning at all. In fact, as Iruka quickly surveyed the scene, he found that not only were the flames not burning the blonde prodigy's clothes away, but it also wasn't hot at all… in fact, it didn't even seem to be affecting Hinata's body at all._

_**-In all certainty, the sight of you slowly burning away scared me to death, but for the flames to only burn your body and nothing else was unheard of. I almost began to believe it was some sort of specialized Amaterasu flame. -**_

_Hinata soon realized that something was amiss when she looked up and found that the flames were not only not burning her at all, but they didn't even seem hot. In fact, they seemed to be avoiding her at all costs, intent on only burning the boy under her to cinders._

_With an almighty scream of "NO!" Hinata tore her bulky coat off and tried to use it to snuff out the flames coating Naruto's body JUST in time for Sasuke to return with the doctors. The group watched, stunned, as the distraught eleven-year-old girl struggled, albeit to no avail, to put out the fires that threatened to take her crush from the world._

_**- I was acting less and less on conscious thought by the second; the only thought in my head by the time you had lost your legs was "MAKE IT STOP!" However, I somehow knew deep down that it wasn't going to stop. I still need to find a way to repay Iruka-sensei for tackling me to the floor, though; that left a bruise for weeks! -**_

_Finally finding his strength of will returning, Iruka jumped from his position and tackled Hinata to the floor, struggling in earnest to keep her from breaking free and straddling the burning blonde boy once more._

_**- The doctors fought as hard as they could to stop the flames, but all they seemed to do was make it worse.**_

_The doctors soon began a furious torrent of water jutsu, all strong enough to douse the mightiest of flames, but also weak enough to further damage Naruto's burning body. Despite this, they were unable to do much more than spur the flames to greater heights; it appeared to be feeding off of their chakra._

_Hinata managed to turn in place just in time to see Naruto's feet finish burning away, and fought her hardest to break free of Iruka's grip as she watched Naruto's hands and arms slowly fleck away into the air. _

_Within a short five minutes of the phenomenon starting, Naruto's arms and legs had burned away, and the flames were slowly making their way up his torso. However, despite their lack of speed, they seemed to be burning hotter, as the rate of decomposition began to increase at a startling speed. Hinata managed to land a low-blow to Iruka's groin and broke free another three minutes later when the flames had reached the base of Naruto's neck._

_It didn't surprise anyone that Naruto wasn't even breathing anymore. _

_The scene that followed was the MOST traumatic thing Sasuke and Iruka had ever seen, and wound up being more disturbing than anything either male would EVER see again. In one final burst of speed, a degree of which no one knew she possessed, Hinata jumped from the floor to the bed and picked up Naruto's head, which was rapidly flaking away from the chin up._

_Without any thought or warning, Hinata did the only thing she could think of to do, and the one of a string of a few CHOICE things she'd only ever wanted to do with Naruto…_

_**- It still kind of makes me shiver to think of what I did next… -**_

_SHE KISSED HIM ON THE LIPS AS HIS HEAD BURNED AWAY._

_**- I think I managed to scar everyone there for the rest of his or her life. I mean, shy girls aren't exactly known for jumping onto a hospital bed, picking up the burning head of the man they love and kissing them like a lover… Again, I wasn't exactly thinking straight at the time. I just didn't want to lose you without knowing what it would feel like… -**_

_Sasuke's eyes slammed open; he'd never seen anyone act as Hinata was now. However, what was worse was that, regardless of how disturbing he found the scene before him to be, he couldn't seem to tear his gaze away… even after his gag reflex kicked in and he projectile vomited all over the head of the bed._

_Iruka couldn't believe what he was seeing; he'd known about Hinata's feelings for Naruto for over a year, and had been intending to inform him over dinner that night. However, he hadn't known how EXTREME Hinata's feelings were. The only thing he could think to do when Hinata quietly pressed her lips to Naruto's… was to promptly faint._

_Hinata was completely oblivious to the reactions her sensei and classmate gave to her actions, and at the time, even if she had seen their reactions, she just could NOT have cared less. However, mere seconds later, she found her hands clasped together as she slumped forward._

_Naruto was gone. He'd burned to ashes and vanished in the wind._

_Everyone watched as Hinata slowly rose to her knees once more, bent back at the waist and screamed Naruto's name in anguish and despair. For what felt to all present like a hundred years, Hinata sat on the bed, screaming as loud as she could manage._

_If anyone would have reprimanded her for her actions and called them a "tantrum", she'd have hauled off and snapped them like twigs. They just didn't understand; the most important person in her small world was gone. There wasn't even a scrap of his chakra left in the room; he was gone completely, as though his very essence had been wiped from the face of the earth. -_

Hinata shook gently in Naruto's arms for a moment, trying to calm herself as the gentle sobs that had begun to wrack her body intensified. When Naruto had said that it wasn't her fondest memory, he'd made a GRAVE understatement. The memories of that day, as well as the three that followed, were by far and large that absolute darkest days of her life; from the moment she returned home to the Hyuuga compound, escorted by Iruka, she'd ran straight to her room and locked herself inside. The only time she'd even think to come out was to use the facilities.

She had no appetite. She had no desire for ANYTHING. In fact, her entire family could do little more for those three days than silently walk past her room and sadly shake their heads at the sound of a broken young girl as she wailed her heart out from grief and heartbreak. After the first day, the clan elders had decided to do away with her and had stormed past her father's study. Hiashi would have none of it.

"It still touches my heart to know my father always cared about me…" Hinata said, still shaking through her sobs, "he always acted so cold and unforgiving up until that point… I guess he couldn't help it. I can still remember the months after my mother's passing; he acted exactly the same way I did. He didn't care for anything and only seemed to calm down when he held Hanabi-nee-chan and me in his arms tight enough to strangle us.

"However, that day showed me a side of my father I never knew existed. For all the distance he'd forced between us, I knew he still held a soft spot for me when I walked out to use the bathroom and found the entire group of elders unconscious on the floor in front of my room. My father was standing over them, frozen in a Jyuken stance, his eyes frozen in a furious snarl… and looking right at me.

"I'll admit, it terrified me to see him that way, but as soon as his eyes saw my own, he softened immediately and hugged me. I couldn't do anything… except break down in his arms. For the rest of that day he sat in his study with me in his arms, comforting me as only someone who'd suffered as I had could do. Even as the Elders approached to finish what they'd started, Otou-san gave them devilish glares that sent them running."

Sitting behind Hinata, Naruto wasn't just shocked, he was "shell-shocked". He'd heard how hard Hinata had taken his "passing", but this was the first time she'd actually TOLD him herself how hard it had been for the duration of his awakening. He now resolved to fully make up for the pain he'd caused her; in addition, he resolved to find an appropriate way to repay her father for taking care of her while he was otherwise preoccupied.

He returned from his thoughts when Hinata continued, "You can't begin to imagine the conflict I felt when I felt your chakra return on that last day… I'd watched you burn away, and there was no trace of you, physically or chakra-wise, left, so how was it possible for your chakra to be back in the EXACT place it had vanished?

"I didn't even care how I was dressed that day… I just had to confirm it for myself. I took off out my bedroom window before my father could tell something was wrong, and before he'd even gotten to my room, I was back in your hospital room, standing in the doorway and staring at an empty bed.

* * *

_**- I couldn't understand it; your chakra was on that bed, but the bed itself was empty. That is, until two seconds later when I was about to leave. -**_

_Hinata felt her eyes fill with tears and turned to leave when she felt a spike of chakra in the room behind her. Turning sharply on her heels, she gasped in surprise and shock._

_**- I didn't know what to make of what I witnessed there… I don't even think any of the doctors knew I was there. -**_

_On the bed before her was a raging storm of red, white, and blue chakra, all spinning in perfect helixes and intermingling with each other. Soon, the mixing chakras settled onto the bed, forming a depression in the sheets._

_Hinata collapsed to her knees from shock and watched, dumbfounded, as most of the surging strands of white chakras on the bed began to form the shape of bones, and soon, a full skeletal structure was lying inside the depression._

_The blue chakra took over next, allowing most of its strands to shift positions and form the beginnings of blood vessels. In mere moments, Hinata watched the veins and arteries the chakra was forming attach to the skeleton._

_Next was the red chakra, which spun in rapid circles for a second before settling over the bones below. In a short few seconds, the chakra had solidified, forming powerful, solid muscles all over the body._

_The white chakra jumped into action again, first forming a full set of internal organs that set themselves into the proper places, before using what was left to form a thick layer of skin over the mess below._

_Hinata now understood what she was watching._

_THE REFORMING SKELETON BELONGED TO NARUTO._

_The remaining blue chakra began spiraling around the faceless body, adding simple little touches to finish off the work. Expertly trimmed nails adorned his fingers and toes, and, despite Hinata's embarrassment, a small tuft of hair began growing from his lower region. She averted her gaze long enough to figure out what she was witnessing, and then steeled her nerves. Looking back, she almost died on the spot._

_The mostly complete body had risen from the bed, reached for a set of hospital gowns on the bed-side table and put them on over the bare flesh as longer, spiky blonde hair erupted form the back of the body's head. The mouth soon formed, a gentle smile gracing the lips Hinata had kissed only days before._

_Next, his nose and eyebrows formed, appearing in place exactly where they'd been before. As his ears slowly formed on the sides of his head, the blue chakra swirled around where his eyes should have been, rapidly forming eyelids that bulged out slightly under the presence of newly formed eyes._

_Then, the moment Hinata had been silently waiting for finally arrived…_

_Naruto, reborn in all his previous glory, opened his eyes and smiled at Hinata. His smile was cut short, however, as she unleashed a sharp shriek of joy and tackled him to the ground, hugging him tight and refusing to let go as she gently nuzzled her face again his._

"_W-what?" he stammered, not trying to struggle._

"_NARUTO-KUN!" she shouted. She proceeded to hug him tighter and tighter as the seconds passed. Naruto smiled again and wrapped his arms around her, returning her embrace._

_It was at that point that the presence of a third party entered the room._

"_HINATA-SAN, WHAT ARE YOU DOING DOWN THERE?" Iruka's voice boomed, sounding both depressed and angry at the same time, "Naruto's been gone for three days! Is this where you've been all this time?" It was at this point that Iruka closely examined the scene before him… and noticed Hinata on top of another individual, as well as the absence of her arms, the presence of another's around her, and the addition of a second pair of legs under her own…_

_Then a flash of bright, blonde hair and sapphire-blue eyes entered his vision._

"_N-Naruto?" Iruka stammered out as the blonde boy slowly rose from the floor with Hinata in his arms. He smiled when Hinata's joy and anxiety caused her to pass out on the spot; instead of setting her down on the bed, he hoisted her up into his arms bridal style and sat on the edge of the bed._

"_Gomen nasai, Iruka-sensei… What'd I miss in school?" Naruto asked innocently._

_For the second time that week, Iruka found himself tilting toward the floor in a dead faint. -  
_

* * *

"I was so relieved when you came back… I just wish I didn't have to watch EVERYTHING come back in pieces…" she said, gaining a slight blush as her sobs ended in gentle laughter. Naruto smiled a bit and held her tighter.

"Well, you don't have to worry about that ever happening again, Hina-chan… I don't intend to EVER put you through that again," Naruto said, reaching down around her shoulder to kiss her cheek. She smiled at the slight contact ad turned her head to capture his lips in a loving kiss.

~ THAT IS THE END… FOR NOW… ~

Hope you liked it! ^_^ For those wondering, I basically combined the "Full Glasgow Smile" with the classic "Cheshire Cat Grin" and added my own touched for something VERY disturbing. We're talking nightmares for a month if you manage to picture it, so… I implore you not to.


	5. INNOCENT PLAY & THE TRUE AWAKENING

[A/N]Here comes Chapter 5. Well, so much for it taking a lot longer for Guren to come out… ^^; Once again, if you're going to review, PLEASE make an account so I can properly reply to you. They're free to make, last I checked, so you don't have to pay for anything. ^_^ [A/N]

_**~~~DEAD CENTER OF THE FOREST OF DEATH, IN A SMALL CLEARING~~~**_

Naruto had gotten up to stretch his legs. As he took a step toward a tree, he felt a familiar twinge of pain in his ankles. Wincing and drawing a hissing breath, Naruto pressed his left hand to the tree ahead and took several deep breaths.

"Is everything alright, Naru-kun?" Hinata asked, worried for her husband's health. Naruto looked over his shoulder and smiled.

"Yeah, I'm fine. My ankles are flaring up a bit… I need to find a proper way to repay Sasuke for that one…" Naruto said, taking another hissing breath in between each sentence to clear his mind of the pain.

Hinata jumped up and walked over as Naruto slowly lowered himself onto the grass and leaned his back against the tree. She noticed that he did this in such a manner that left him a decent view of the crystal formation ahead of them. He was making sure they were ready, should Guren come back out.

Without a second's hesitation, Hinata's hands flared with a bright green chakra, which she quickly passed over his ankles to soothe his pain. Naruto sighed deep in relief as the burning sensation in his feet quickly fled.

"Th-thanks, Hina-chan…" he said, gaining a slight, pink blush. He didn't like to admit it, but some things Hinata did still made him blush. The one thing he didn't want her to know MOST was how the sight of her in an apron in the mornings made his face go beet red. Although, he had to admit that he was quite certain she'd figured it out some time ago and only continued to do it to see his face in the mornings.

She looked up with a smile and, noticing the addition of pink to his cheeks, grinned mischievously.

"That's a cute look for you!" she giggled, "Not quite your "Mornings with Apron-clad Hinata" blush, but it's still a cute look!" Naruto's blush grew far deeper and he covered his face. Hinata laughed innocently as she playfully wrestled with her new husband to take his hands away from his face. The escapade ended several minutes later when, quite to Hinata's surprise, Naruto got into it and tackled her after she'd pushed him onto his back. Now, with him looming over her, she flashed him a playful smirk.

"Now, Now, Rokudaime-sama…" Hinata cooed, a small blush creeping along her cheeks, "What could you possibly be planning to do? You have an innocent young woman pinned down beneath you, after all…" Naruto picked up on the subtle hint and smiled back, lowering his face down to rest mere inches away from hers.

With a pondering look on his face, he said, "Hmmmm… I'm not entirely sure, my dear Jonin captain! Perhaps I should contact your superior officer and ask if I can… kidnap you for the remainder of the day?" He winked playfully, making her blush beneath him. He was Just about to reach down to kiss her when he heard a loud cracking sound.

"_**NO, NO, NO; YOU CAN'T BE DOING THIS NOW!"**_ shouted a female voice from the crystal structure. Naruto and Hinata jumped to their feet and watched, readying weapons and activating their eyes, as the crystal began cracking rapidly. Soon, it was cracked all throughout, and with one mighty explosion that missed the married lovers entirely, Guren revealed herself. She gasped several times, revealing that she'd willed the technique to end on her own.

Naruto paled a bit, but still managed to flash a twisted smile, while Hinata gasped at the horrific degree of damage Naruto had managed to inflict on the crystal-manipulating kunoichi.

Guren's torso had a large, half-healed hole in it from the gun blast, while both arms looked mostly immobile due to the multiple smaller burns and welts along them. In terms of Naruto's stronger attack, the damage was mostly concentrated on her head. Naruto's massive technique had forced her to take on a military-style chop, only the impromptu haircut didn't seem to end there; Guren had only one fringe-like bang remaining, which, along with her mostly bald head and her circular ridge of hair that connected to the two sideburn locks along her ears, made her look like a mountain-borne monk.

However, the damage didn't seem to stop there; blood had begun to flow from multiple sources when Naruto struck with the larger attack, and, and the two Konoha shinobi could see, Guren was missing the skin form the crown of her head. Naruto could have sworn he'd seen solid white. Blood still flowed from her wounds, only it flowed over dried blood that had formed long, scabbed lined from her ears and the corners of her eyes all the way down to her neck, where it seemed to vanish into her dress… or whatever was left of it.

Due to the frontal assault, Guren's clothing had been torn away, leaving what could barely even be called a RAG. As it stood, there was barely anything standing to guard her sensitive bits from the eyes of ANYONE. Hinata felt a little nervous seeing how little clothing Guren had left, but her worry soon passed.

'_Don't worry, Hina-chan,'_ Naruto's voice said, the gentle, calming tone ringing through her mind, _'I closed my eyes as soon as I saw her clothes. I'm not going to open my eyes for this fight. I promised I wouldn't look at other girls, and I intend to follow through on that promise.'_ Hinata smiled a bit and nodded, activating a hidden filter in her eyes and linking her mind to his. In seconds, Naruto smiled along with Hinata, and the two stood ready, waiting for the first attack to be thrown.

Naruto kept his eyes tightly closed, knowing full well what Hinata had done: using the shared nature of their chakra and abilities, she'd filtered out Guren's lack of clothing and shared images of a completely clothed, but still injured, Guren, directly into his mind, which then travelled as electrical signals to his retinas. He didn't need to open his eyes to know where his foe was now, and he certainly wasn't going to let her get away.

However, neither husband nor wife was prepared for Guren's first action.

Taking a step forward, Guren inhaled deeply and then bellowed, "WHY DO YOU TWO THINK YOU DESERVE PLAYTIME IN THE MIDDLE OF BATTLE? WHAT ARE YOU, BRAND NEW ACADEMY STUDENTS? THIS IS A BATTLEFIELD, FOR KAMI'S SAKE! JUST BECAUSE I'M TRYING TO HEAL DOESN'T MEAN YOU GET TO BE PETTY LITTLE BRATS WHO SETTLE DOWN FOR NAP TIME WHEN THEY THINK THE ENEMY'S UNTOUCHABLE!"

Hinata winced a bit, but found herself once more in awe of her husband.

Without warning, Naruto shot forth, stopping just in front of Guren to lift her off the ground by her throat with his left hand. The green-haired woman's legs began kicking in the open air while her fingers pried helplessly at his hand. As the seconds past, Guren found her strength failing as the oxygen supply to her lungs became scarcer. The entire time, she stared down, terrified, into Naruto's azure blue eyes, watching as they gained a thick ring of murderous red around the pupils, which soon transformed into a sort of cross. He'd activated his Kyuubi Chakra and turned on Sage mode, causing his pupils to become bars with long, feline slits.

"YOU THINK YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO LECTURE **ME**?" Naruto demanded, his grip on Guren's throat tightening slightly, "YOU THINK THAT AFTER CRASHING MY WEDDING, KIDNAPPING MY BRIDE, HOLDING HER HOSTAGE, AND TRYING TO** KILL HER**, THAT YOU GET TO PLAY THE "ADULT LECTURING LITTLE CHILDREN" CARD? ** GROW UP, WOMAN!**" Naruto moved, throwing the heavily injured woman to the forest floor several yards away.

"WE WERE LESS THAN THREE HOURS AWAY FROM OUR HONEYMOON! **OUR HONEYMOON, DO YOU UNDERSTAND?** We were going to leave for a few months and be happy, and then come back home and live our lives together! YET, YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING TO WALTZ IN, STEAL MY NEW BRIDE AND TRY TO KILL HER? HOW ABOUT I SHOW YOU WHAT YOU'VE REALLY BROUGHT UPON YOURSELF! **BECAUSE THE NEXT TIME YOU ACTIVATE THAT BLASTED CRYSTAL SHIELD, I'M GOING TO RIP IT OUT OF THE GROUND AND SMASH IT TO PIECES WITH YOU IN IT!**" Naruto shouted, forming a massive orb of spinning Chakra and stars in each hand.

Hinata, knowing what Naruto was planning, did the only thing she could think of: she teleported to their pocket dimension to wait out the results.

Meanwhile, Guren was weighing her options. While inside her crystal coffin, she'd been all but dead to the world. Sure, she was unconscious and verifiably comatose, but she was still able to sense and hear everything outside of her supposedly impenetrable shield. She'd listened, with an almost morbid fascination, as the man and woman who were lauded as the "World's Most Powerful Duo" and "The Indestructible Lovers" had sat back, talking back and forth, sharing in reminiscence of the blonde man's life.

The more she'd heard, the more she had begun to realize that she might be in well over her head. In fact, at this point, watching the man add another three spinning spheres around each of the ones in his hands, while all eight spheres gained a gold-and-crimson hue, she fully realized that if she tried ANYTHING now, she'd be deader than dead. As it stood, she'd wind up so badly destroyed that any celestial being that found her remains would leave her there, complaining about her being "the hardest jigsaw puzzle ever seen".*

For that reason, Guren sighed in defeat and held up her hands, silently declaring her defeat by Naruto's hands.

Naruto knew he should have just destroyed this woman for what she'd done, but he could feel his focus slipping. It had been several hours, and dusk was approaching. He had been up all the night before, nervous about his wedding earlier this day, and he knew that even if he managed to strike her down, he more than likely wouldn't survive. Even if he did, he'd need almost a year of recuperation and recovery before he'd be able to assume active duty again.

With that, Naruto willed the outer spheres into non-existence and dropped the gold-and red chakras from the two in his hands before slamming one into a tree next to him. Guren heard the noise of wood splintering and looked up to see Naruto still holding one Rasengan in his right hand.

"GET UP," Naruto demanded, "And turn your back to me with your hands behind your head. I'm keeping this one at the ready; you even THINK about forming a hand seal, I'm going to slam this right into your BRAIN." Guren nodded, knowing she was completely defeated, and did as told. Hinata stepped out of the sub-dimension at that time and smiled before walking over to her husband.

Moments later, after a couple stumbles on the blonde man's part, Hinata was supporting him with her shoulders, making sure to keep a steady stream of chakra flowing from her right hand to his to ensure his threatening Rasengan stayed active.

Naruto nodded, and, as they walked, mused, "Well, since this fight's basically over, I might as well continue with my story… I think I was just about at THAT point…"

_**_  
CHAPTER 5: INNOCENT PLAY & THE TRUE AWAKENING**_

OP: "SOUL DYNAMITE" - ACCESS

_**~ At the time, I didn't understand what was happening. I remembered intense pain, and then everything went black. When I next opened my eyes, I was floating in an endless traverse, with no definitive end in sight. That was, until I spotted the bars of a familiar cage in an unknown room. ~**_

"_Where am I?" Naruto thought. He'd only been floating along in white space for a couple seconds, but now found that he was standing in a small room with a large cage built into one wall. Looking around the room, Naruto found it was all the same: brown walls with long orange streaks of color in random places. When he turned his gaze back to the center of the room, he noticed a couch that hadn't been there before._

"_HEY! It's been a while, huh Boya?" said a familiar voice. It was only then that Naruto noticed three sets of hair rising from the couch: Naruto recognized the head of orange hair, but when it came to one full of blonde hair, and another with tomato-red hair, he could only draw a blank. The three heads of hair turned, revealing two men, one of whom was Kozue, and a woman. Naruto's face lit up._

_**~ Kozu-kun was only too easy to recognize; I didn't know anyone else with his hair color. However, it was only when the red-haired woman spoke that I realized who she and the blonde man were. ~**_

"_LOOK, OUR NARU-KUN IS HERE!" The red-haired woman yelled, vaulting over the couch to embrace the blonde boy in a second. The boy took two seconds to realize who she was. The two broke down, crying into each other's shoulders._

_Kozue, with his eyes closed, "looked" at his blonde companion and said, "So, Mina-kun… why aren't you going in there and joining them?" The messy-headed blonde man smiled, a single tear coming to his eyes._

"_It's best to give them their space for the time being. I'll have plenty of time to go all emotional over him soon enough, just you wait," The man said._

_Chuckling a bit, Kozue looked at his blonde friend again and said, "Really, Minato-kun? I have a hard time picturing YOU, of all people, going emotional. Guess it just doesn't fit in with that "Yondaime Hokage" image you've set out for yourself, huh?" Minato smiled._

"_I guess you have a point… But, you know what they say," Minato said, "Appearances can be deceiving. I mean, look at Ku-chan. She doesn't look like much at first glance, but make her mad and she WILL destroy you. I'm lucky I was spared from the same fate as anyone who was ever stupid enough to piss her off!" Minato whispered to Kozue. The orange-haired blind man nodded in understanding. The two cousins had rarely agreed on much, but when it came to Minato's wife, they were in total agreement: stay on her good side, or get digging a shallow grave FAST._

_**~ It only lasted a few moments, but I felt like my kaa-san understood all of my pain. I didn't realize how much she hadn't witnessed until a little later. ~**_

_Minutes later, the red-head let go of Naruto, prompting the blonde man to lead Kozue over to the two before placing his hand on his son's head and saying, "Hey, Naruto-kun. You've grown up a bit, huh? When I last saw you, you were barely even a foot tall!" Minato ruffled the blonde boy's hair a bit; this had the effect of making Naruto give a beaming smile._

_Kozue stepped closer and put a hand on Naruto's shoulder._

"_Hey, boya, I think it's time to introduce you to your parents. The blonde man here is your tou-san, Minato, while the red-head is your kaa-san, Kushina. And boy oh boy, do we have a lot to get to!" Kozue said, pointing in the direction of the couch. The three others nodded and walked over, Minato once again leading Kozue by the hand._

_**~ Only then did I remember a healing technique I could use to let him have his eyes back… even if he was just a spirit in my mind. After all, the mind makes everything you experience within it as real as anything outside you experience on the outside. ~**_

_Seeing this, Naruto stopped the group and said, "Hang on, tou-san, can you help Ko-kun down to my eye-level?" Minato was a bit scared, but nodded and helped his cousin down. Naruto flashed through a set of hand seals and, with a slight greenish glow forming over his hands, Naruto passed both hands over his cousin's eyes._

_Moments later, when he felt something in his sockets, Kozue opened his eyes, albeit with a bit of care and worry, only to find he could see. He looked Naruto in the eyes, and the blonde boy smiled. _

"_I thought it wouldn't be right to let you walk around without your eyes, so I gave you your old brown ones back. Although, they don't have the powers you gave me anymore… The medical ninjutsu I used is only useful for restoring body parts you've lost, nothing more or less," Naruto said. Kozue stared at him._

"_If you knew that move… why didn't you use it back in the forest?" Kozue asked. Naruto shook his head._

"_As far as I was told, your injury was caused by a poisoned blade. The ninjutsu wouldn't have been able to do anything about the poison; the only thing I could have done with it is heal the cut, but that would have sealed the poison in you and killed you anyway. That and… I wasn't exactly thinking straight at the time…" Naruto said as his face turning into a low frown. Minato shook his head and squeezed his son's shoulder gently._

_**~ It still hurt a bit to realize that even though I'd known the technique to begin with, I had still frozen enough to forget how to use it. It hurt knowing I could have possibly done SOMETHING to help him survive even a bit longer… ~**_

"_Don't blame yourself, Naruto-kun. There wasn't much you could have done to save Ko-kun. Though, I can't help but wonder how you managed to learn that move in the first place?" the older blonde man asked. Naruto nodded._

_After the four sat down, Naruto on the floor with the three adults on the couch, he said, "After I was picked up by Jiji, the villagers thought that just because I wasn't given tou-san's surname, I had been "taken over by the demon". Before you ask, don't worry about telling me; the Kyuubi took care of that on the night before I was taught that technique. You see, every year on my birthday, the villagers, minus the kids, would get into a mob and chase me around town until they got me cornered, then viciously beat me. I've always hated my birthday for that reason, as most of the day is spent running for my life, while the rest of it is spent in a hospital bed recovering."_

_**~ Everything I told them was the truth. Many of the other children were only afraid of me and wouldn't step in to help because their parents had drilled into their heads that I would hurt them severely should they ever try to help me. It was clearly a bold-faced lie, but everyone has something that is similar to gospel… and to a growing child, the threat of someone hurting you is gospel enough. ~**_

_Naruto took a deep breath and continued, "When I turned five, the villagers decided to get especially nasty. Just before they left after the beating, several of the men decided tear me up so the doctors wouldn't have enough of me left to heal. I was… stabbed repeated, had my ears, nose, and tongue ripped from my face, and my eyes were torn out. Regardless of the fact that the Hokage Mansion wasn't too far away, Jiji met me at the door before I could open it, and screamed for me not to die on him. He did most of the healing himself, putting me in JUST good enough of a state that the doctors would have an easier job of caring for me. After that, he put out a decree that ANYONE who attacked me in any way was to be immediately executed, unless I felt I should show my attackers what it felt like. The day after, the doctors and nurses spent the day taking turns teaching me advanced medical ninjutsu while the ANBU hunted down anyone who had been involved in my near-death the night before. In all, fifty men and twenty women were executed that day and made an "example" of."_

_**~ It hurt to see my kaa-san crying; it hurt worse than anything else did. However, to see Kozu-kun sitting there looking like he was getting ready to rise from his grave and raze the village to ashes was scarier than any mob of ignorant villagers. ~**_

_Minato was stunned. He looked at Kushina, who'd broken down into a hysterical heap on his shoulder, and then at Kozue, whose eyes were bent into an angry glare. Minato fought to hold back the urge to break down and join his wife in hysterical weeping._

_Biting back the tears, Minato asked, 'So, did the villagers stop coming after you?" Naruto laughed._

"_HARDLY…" Naruto said, "As it turned out, the execution only served to make them come back worse than ever. Only they took to injuring me in ways that couldn't be easily detected. Sure, they broke a few bones now and then, but internal bleeding and bruises ON TOP of preexisting bruises soon joined everything else. Just before the day Kakashi-san and I found you, Ko-kun, Jiji had gotten the ANBU involved in actually taking care of my every-day activities, planning everything for me and making sure that I had enough food and clean clothes. Aside from Kakashi-san and… I think their names were Anko-san and Yugao-san… Anyway, those three specific ANBU have made sure my life's been rather easy over the past year or so. I owe all three of them so much..."_

_**~ It was always funny watch the three of them drop out of nowhere and use any of the villagers in the mobs as examples of the repercussions of the group's actions. The stunned faces on those people's faces as they realized, or in later cases, remembered, that I had ANBU backing me was just TOO priceless. ~**_

_Kushina smiled at her son. She felt relieved that he had people to depend on for protection. Minato sat there, holding an arm around Kushina's shoulders in comfort; he was pleased he'd managed to befriend members of the ANBU. Meanwhile, Kozue's face remained locked in an angry stare._

_After a few minutes of silence, Kozue shook his head and looked at Naruto._

_**~ This was it: Kozu-kun was going to educate me on my eyes and the various powers they granted me. The day I'd been waiting for was here. ~**_

"_Naru-kun, I told you a few months ago that I'd inform you of the full scope of your powers when you got to Genin. Well, you're a Genin now, so allow me to explain," Kozue said, "Basically speaking, the power of our clans eyes, called the Hoshigan in its earliest stage, comes in five stages. First is the Hoshigan, the basic form. This is identified with a star pattern over the pupil. In this base stage, the user is able to use low-level Jutsu without the need for hand seals by channeling the jutsu into the eyes, where they are shot out as a beam or wave. Wave-type attacks are diluted area of effect and hit LARGE areas in ALL directions, while Beam-type attacks are concentrated direct attacks that can be manipulated by sight. It also allows you to call upon the stars themselves to attack and defend; At best, with basic chakra control, you can summon and use small stars as projectiles or instant shields._

"_The next stage, called the Hekihoshigan, or Piercing Star Eye, allows for slightly higher-level jutsu to be used with the eyes, and allows for greater control of the stars, to the point where you can form small weapons from them. This stage can only be attained through three straight days of control exercises where you are forbidden to eat, drink, or sleep at all. Next is the Kajouhoshigan, or Spiral Star Eye, which allows for rapid-fire use of all jutsu of Jonin-level jutsu and below, as well as the ability to call down groups of stars at once. The difference from the previous callings is that instead of summoning two or three at once, you can call as many as twenty stars at once. The weapons and eventual armor you can form with this are stronger than ever._

"_The fourth stage, which is the last one before you hit the ultimate level, is called the Bakuyaku Hoshigan, or Explosive Star Eye. This version allows you to fire off Hokage-level and higher jutsu with little backlash, and call entire constellations down from the skies, for various purposes. They can be used for bombing attacks, to form weapons and equipment, or even to summon the beings depicted in them for super-special attacks. However, the fifth and final level, which you should NEVER use, is fittingly called the Saigohoshigan, or Final Star Eye. With this version, the only attack you're capable of is a single, omniscient blast of energy formed of all the chakra you have in your body, which will strike in a spherical formation fifty square miles in all directions. Anything and EVERYTHING caught in the blast will be destroyed, without fail, including the user, whose body becomes the center point of the devastation. Not one single member of the Namikaze clan, minus your tou-san because he never got the eyes, has ever been able to figure out how to perform the attack remotely, without being inside the attack at the time of activation. Maybe… one day… if you're brave enough to try, you'll be able to figure it out and be the only member of the clan to ever do it," Kozue finished. Naruto sat there, silent, as he tried to filter through this information._

_**~ I was floored for a little while, but thanks to my brain's enhanced ability to filter information, I got the gist of it quickly. ~**_

"_So, basically, as I progress, I'll be able to use more difficult jutsu without using hand seals, except for the ones pertaining to the star-type techniques, right? And if I hit the final version, be careful NOT to use it unless I'm sure I'll be able to get out before the attack starts OR activate it from a remote location, right?" Naruto asked. Kozue nodded._

"_Exactly; however, I only know about the final attack, "Hoshiton: Saigo no Ten"*," Kozue said, "is because I saw it twice growing up. My grandfather used it against an invading nation and obliterated their entire army at the cost of his life. Then, a few years later, with a similar situation, my mother and father left the family village to take on an entire invading force by themselves. Their twin version of the attack was large enough to span the distance from Konohagakure to Sunagakure, and left a hole in the earth that was several hundred feet deep." Naruto nodded. He'd have to ensure he never reached that point._

_**~ The thought of being the FIRST one to ever perform the Saigo no Ten without killing myself was the first thing that set me off. However, I didn't know what else would end up driving me. Around the time I awakened the Fifth Level, I'd entirely forgot. ~**_

"_Naru-kun…" Kozue asked, "Have you ever heard of or used the Kage Bunshin?" Naruto nodded._

"_I've read ABOUT it, but never the method of using it. Although, with access to Kyuubi's chakra, I'm pretty sure I could train my Hoshigan to extreme levels in a short period, considering the nature of the technique and how much chakra it uses… I could probably make a small army of clones and train until sundown," Naruto said. Kozue nodded._

"_That should help. In the end, the more training you get in within the three days it takes to hit Level Two, the better your chances are of shooting straight past it to Level Three, or, if you're EXTREMELY lucky, Level Four," Kozue said. Naruto nodded._

"_Plus, the more clones I train with, the better chance I have of figuring out how to remote detonate the "Saigo no Ten", right?" Naruto asked. Kozue nodded. Minato decided it was time to step in._

_**~ Tou-san was next to share a secret with me. ~**_

"_Naru-kun, you've already said you know about the Kyuubi being sealed inside you. However, do you know the true nature of the sealing?" Minato asked. Naruto shook his head._

"_Strictly speaking," Minato said, "When I sealed the Kyuubi away, I used the Shiki Fujin seal, so in effect, I sealed half of its chakra inside myself and the Shinigami. However, the Kyuubi had two types of chakra at the time, so I was forced to take one portion. I took all of its negative Yin chakra, and sealed its remaining positive Yang Chakra within you. With that kind of power, you're able to do things I never could."_

_**~ Hearing all this was impressing, but it wasn't nearly as impressing as what I heard next. ~**_

"**INDEED HE IS, MINATO-SAN!**_**"**__ a feminine voice said out of the clear blue. All four occupants of the room looked up as a ring of golden light heralded the arrival of… _

"_KAMI-SAMA," Minato, Kushina and Kozue said together as they bowed in reverence, "To what do we owe the honor?"_

"**Settle, settle. I'm not here to take you back yet. You haven't even used up the maximum time limit yet,**_**"**__ Kami said, __**"**_**As it happens, I'm here to grant young Naruto a portion of Heaven's collective power.**_**"**__ Kushina's jaw dropped, while Minato's eyes exploded from his head and Kozue looked like a deer caught in headlights. Naruto, on the other hand, looked indifferent._

"_What does that mean… exactly?" he asked. Kami nodded._

"**Simply put, due to combinations in your elemental alignment, you have the ability to summon the beings of heaven to your aide. You will be granted the ability to heal nearly any wound, neutralize any poison, erect holy barriers that can defend against every, and I mean EVERY, type of attack, and even return the dead to life. Well… with the exception of anyone who's given their life with my sister's technique,**_**"**__ Kami said. Naruto frowned._

_**~ I thought for sure we were finished. However… Rarely does life work that simply for me. ~ **_

"**NOT ENTIRELY TRUE!**_**"**__ another voice, slightly deeper in tone but just as feminine as Kami's, said from nowhere. Everyone watched as a ring of blackness opened in the floor and the Shinigami rose up from beneath._

"_**Ah, sister Yami, the boy has the potential for your power also?"**__ Kami said. Yami nodded, and then looked Naruto in the eyes… at least, with the way her ragged black hood hung over her face, at best, she LOOKED like she was looking at him._

"**As it stands, due to similar combinations in your alignment, you can call upon my powers as well: The powers of HELL,**_**"**__ Yami said, __**"**_**You'll be able to call upon the powers of pure hellfire, exude corrosively toxic gasses from your skin, and summon the beasts of Hell's deepest pits to attack your enemies. In addition, you, and YOU ALONE, have the power to bring back from the dead any who have ever used the Shiki Fujin.**_**"**_

_Minato, hearing all this, thought it over a moment. Soon, his blue eyes looked at the two deities skeptically._

"_If Naru-kun has the ability to use BOTH of your powers, then does that mean…?"_

_**~ Surely, you would think that we'd be finished here, right? Once again, it seemed life had it in for me, because it decided to throw me ONE MORE CURVEBALL. ~**_

"_**Indeeeeeeed…**_**"**_ drawled a deep, commanding voice. Seconds later, a gaseous being formed behind the two sisters, taking a barely human form as it "stood" and stared at Naruto with non-existent eyes._

"**Brother Kon!**_**"**__ Kami said, stepping aside as her sister said, __**"**_**Why are you here? Don't tell me…**_**"**_

"_**Aaaaaas I said, INDEEEEEEEED he does. The young Namikaze is capable of harnessing the powers of true chaos. Aaaaaas he bears both your powers in his body, he is able to combine them to form my own. Iiiiiin the case of my powers, boy, the power of chaos is quite simple. Uuuuusing my powers will allow you to completely invert and reverse your target's natural elemental alignment; thus, you will be able to make their strongest power their greatest weakness. Iiiiiin addition, their weakest alignment will be made even weaker, forcing them to rely on physical strength alone, as before the powers of chaos, genjutsu is completely eliminated,"**_Kon said._ Naruto stared. _

_**~ I couldn't believe it… All that power and it was all because of my lineage and my eyes. It was overwhelming. ~**_

_Kushina looked at her son and smiled._

"_I always had a feeling you'd grow up to be a great shinobi, Naruto! Now we know just how great you're going to be!" she said happily. Naruto nodded._

_After what felt like a few more hours, Naruto felt something pulling on him._

_Shaking his head sadly, Minato said, "I guess it's time to go for now. Don't worry though; you can see us again any time you're sleeping. Just call for us, alright?" Naruto smiled and hugged his father. After hugging his mother and high-fiving his cousin, Naruto regarded the two deities and their gaseous brother. _

_With a single deep breath, he said, "Is there anything I have to do to fully obtain your powers?"_

"**Actually, yes,**_**"**__ Kami said, __**"**_**You have to sign a pair of contracts from each of the three of us… in blood. We can save that for a later date, though; you should go now.**_**"**__ Naruto nodded and waved goodbye as his body faded into nothingness. ~_

Guren nodded silently to herself as Naruto dictated more of his past to his new wife, all the while unaware and seemingly uncaring of whether or not her blonde captor had noticed her listening. The more she heard, the more she realized whom she was dealing with. If this man had really taken down Orochimaru, her old master, as he was reported to have done, she understood how little chance she stood. After all, Orochimaru had once been a higher-than Kage-level shinobi, one of the three legendary Sannin, and, of course, had a staggering list of mastered techniques.

For this man, as a young man, to face him down, not once or twice, but THREE times over a five-year period and make him flee until his downfall, proved her captor's superiority. She almost considered changing sides, hoping she'd be able to learn something useful from him. However, Orochimaru entered her mind once more, and she remembered her purpose.

She had a mission to complete… and she'd be damned to hell if she failed before she was sent to meet her old master.

Little did she know exactly WHAT she was getting into.

~ THE END… FOR NOW… ~

Hope you liked it! ^_^

* - A box of cookies to the first person to tell me who first used the line about "The hardest jigsaw puzzle ever seen". As a hint, it's not a politician; the person who first used this was a certain comedian whose last name rhymes with "TACK", as in "sharper than a tack".

For those wondering, the technique Naruto almost used is:

Hoshi Senpo: Kyuubi no Wakusei Rasen Tarengan=Star Sage Art: Kyuubi's Planetary Spiraling Serial Spheres (Or, for the gamers, "Star Sage Art: Planetary Kyuubi Rasengan Barrage"): a pair of standard grade Planetary Rasengan enhanced with Naruto's special Star Chakra. Normally, the simple addition of Naruto's star chakra would add a heightened level of cutting power, but with the addition of sage chakra AND Kyuubi chakra to the mix, the sheer destructive force of the attack would be enough to level a fifth of the planet Earth. As it is, Naruto didn't use it, not because of the damage it would have done, nor because of what happened in this chapter… but because he was tired and didn't have the concentration he needed to hold the attacks together without having them go off on HIM.


	6. SEALING & TEAM ASSIGNMENTS

[A/N]Here comes Chapter 6. Once again, if you're going to review, PLEASE make an account so I can properly reply to you. They're free to make, last I checked, so you don't have to pay for anything. ^_^ [A/N]

_**~~~KONOHAGAKURE TOP-PRIORITY PRISON, MAXIMUM SECUIRTY ZONE FLOOR THREE~~~**_

It took the three an hour and a half to return to Konoha from the Forest of Death, but only because of Naruto's lack of chakra and physical exhaustion from overuse of high-level jutsu. Despite his Rasengan bottoming out after a half hour of constant activation, Hinata managed to keep Guren in line by threatening to "take away all feeling in her body". Guren paled at that, picking up on the subtle implication of Hinata's threat:

"_One precision strike to a VERY specific part of your body, and you'll NEVER FEEL AGAIN."_

Once they returned, Naruto immediately had Guren imprisoned in Konoha's highest security center: Essentially the cell she was placed in was a small bunker built within a much larger one, buried over five hundred meters underground. The ONLY method of collecting fresh air for the inmates was a series of expertly-placed chakra strings, courtesy of a particular master puppeteer from Konoha's ally, Sunagakure.

Given that Konoha hadn't been able to capture any of their more formidable criminals before Naruto came along, Guren was the only prisoner of this facility, and, thus, had no company. Moreover, with the facts being that she not only crashed the newly-appointed Hokage's wedding, but also kidnapped his new bride and attempted to murder her, her treatment in this facility was anything but pleasant.

Naruto's first set of orders included the addition of a powerful chakra-sealing fuinjutsu array on her back, which locked up ALL of her chakra; however, in order to "brand" her with this array, she had to be stripped down to a complete lack of any clothing. Not that she entered the place with any semblance of clothing to begin with; most of it having been blasted or sheered away by Naruto's various attacks in the forest.

That being the case, Naruto had at first refused to do the sealing at all. It was only after Hinata suggested they use the link between their eyes and chakra to seal Guren in his stead. Naruto had agreed to this idea. Therefore,, in Hinata went, her vision relayed by chakra pulses and electric signals to Naruto's retinas, while allowing him enough control of her body to draw the seal himself from a distance.

Had one had walked in at any time during the seal drawing, they would have believed that Itachi Uchiha was in the building somewhere, sending out a genjutsu that would have made even Jiraiya and Kakashi's jaws drop.. Naruto sat with his back back to the bars of the cell, his head lolled off to one side with his eyes closed. Meanwhile, inside the cell was Hinata, sitting on a stool in front of Guren, who, stripped to nudity, was roped up by her wrists to the ceiling and left to hang helplessly while Hinata, controlled by Naruto, drew a chakra-sealing array on the green-haired woman's back in ink mixed with Naruto's blood. To the naked eye, Naruto appeared to be in a deep sleep.

However, Naruto wasn't unconscious.

"So," Naruto said, his voice echoing in the empty stone facility, "How much of my stories did you hear in the forest while you were encased in that blasted crystal coffin of yours?" Guren jumped a little, if that were possible.

"A-all of it," she replied, her voice shaking a little. Naruto nodded a bit.

"Since this has to be the most boring thing Hinata and I have ever had to do, what say I continue? I haven't had anyone besides Hinata who's ever heard my stories and been so… for lack of a better term, interested in them before," Naruto admitted, his voice lowering an octave as his finished his sentence. Guren tensed a bit, but with a single poke from Hinata, relaxed again, fearful of what the indigo-haired woman behind her would do to her if even one character was wrong. Guren could tell that this wasn't a question… it was a statement. Naruto was outright telling her to sit back and listen to what he had to say. It wasn't as if Guren really had a choice in the matter, given that she was bound by rope to the ceiling with her hands back-to-back to prevent her from casting a jutsu. She solemnly nodded.

"As you would," she replied, unsure of how to address her captor. She feared he'd yell and interrogate her violently if she referred to him by name, or else subject her to painful, inhumane tortures if she referred to him by title.

"Alright then," Naruto said, taking a breath, "And, for the record, you can just call me "sir"." Guren gulped audibly; had he just read her mind?

"Y-yes sir," she said quietly. Naruto nodded, a small frown creeping up on his face.

"Alright… Where did I leave off, Hina-chan?" he asked passively.

"You left off just after you woke up from your "enhancement", Naru-kun," she said happily.

"Alright… Let's see then…" Naruto said, taking another deep breath.

_**_  
CHAPTER 6: SEALING & TEAM ASSIGNMENTS**_

OP: "SOUL DYNAMITE" - ACCESS

_**~ It took me about two weeks to recover and get used to the improvements made to my body while I was unconscious, for lack of a better word. Kozu-kun hadn't lied: I was stronger, to the point of being able to break a glass just by holding it too tightly. Unfortunately, for me, this happened to EVERY glass I picked up for almost two weeks after. **_

_**I was also faster, both in foot speed and in mental situations. Where I could have spent on hour working out a complex math equation, I now took less than ten minutes. I could even outrun the fastest Jonin, which I did on a constant basis thereafter, if only to get in a decent workout in the morning.**_

_**Overall, it became that much harder for Sasuke to keep up with me. For the next three years, I was working constant D-rank missions, and ALWAYS the same ones: painting, trash collecting, and hunting down that poor, mistreated cat… It was no surprise to me when the clients refused to pay me on the grounds of my being a Jinchuriki, but once Jiji-san started issuing a payment-up-front policy, that ended quite quickly; they'd be stuck paying me regardless.**_

_**It was after yet another hunt for that poor cat Tora That I decided to have a talk with Jiji-san about upgrading my mission ranking… and maybe even taking that poor cat in.~ **_

_Since the day Naruto collapsed, he'd been much the same person he'd always been, save for having more spring in his step every day. He also had gone to a store the day after he woke up in order to get new clothes, opting for a shirt with soft shades of red and yellow with orange stripes and a simple pair of black pants._

_It had been three years since his incident, and since, he'd been assigned numerous D-rank missions; he was in the middle of reporting in from what had to have been the thousandth time he'd been sent out to hunt down a wealthy woman's cat. After the first time he'd seen how the woman treated the cat, Naruto continually thought of giving her a clone of some sort and keeping the poor cat himself. He had finally figured out how he'd word it right._

_**~ It too all the courage I had to even think of asking Jiji-san to abduct the cat, but, as it turned out, he'd known of my plans longer than I thought he did.~**_

"_Jiji," Naruto said as he strode into the elder Hokage's office, "I have a couple questions for you, but they can wait until after I give my report of my mission status!"_

"_Naruto… I already know. You succeeded in your mission, you want to keep the cat for yourself, and you want to know why you haven't gotten anything above a D-rank mission, right?" Sarutobi asked._

_**~No matter how many times he did that to me, I always managed to react the same way: like Choji when you show him a bag of chips in a flavor he's never tried. ~**_

"_How did you…" Naruto started. Sarutobi simply smirked and motioned to his crystal ball, which sat on his desk not two feet from his idle left hand._

"_There is nowhere you can hide from me, Naruto," Sarutobi said with a mysterious tone, "I can read lips. For the past few weeks, you've been idly mulling about in your free time, trying to figure out why you haven't seen anything more than the same D-rank missions you've finished time and again. Well, that and trying to figure out how you can keep that poor cat Tora for yourself." Naruto stared at his surrogate grandfather with a strange look in his eyes._

_**~ That wasn't the first time he'd all but read my mind, but it was also not the first time I'd felt mentally violated since my eyes awakened. It was a hard thing to do, but I felt I had to call him out. ~**_

_Naruto gave the elder man a look._

"_So let me guess… I can't keep the cat, and you won't let me have anything over a D-rank because you're afraid of what might happen; because you're afraid of my cousin's warning, right?" Naruto asked. Sarutobi winced; Naruto had hit the nail on the head, but only halfway._

_**~ It felt bad to say it the way I did, but… it was the only way I could think to say it on such short notice.~**_

"_Partially correct, Naruto; there MAY be a way to help you get that poor cat away from his current owner, but I'll leave you and Hatake-san to hash out the details on that one. The reason for the missions, however, is… a touch more than what you're giving me credit for," the elder Hokage said, "As per laws, I am not allowed to hand out any mission over a D-rank to any genin who isn't a part of a three-man cell. And even then, I can't just out-and-out hand you the mission; I'd have to hand it to your Jonin sensei and allow him to brief you and your team. I'm doing this not just because of the law… but because I don't want any unneeded risks to your life right now. You know who your father is… I promised him before his death that I'd protect you with my life. If I suddenly started throwing C and B-rank missions at you for solo duty out of the blue… let's just say your mother had a special list of people she'd be more than willing to kill for hurting you when they die. And if I let you do something that got you killed, I'd be right at the top of her list."_

_Naruto thought it over and smiled._

"_I get it… It's the law… MOREOVER, you're covering both our butts. Smooth one, Jiji!" Naruto said. Sarutobi smiled back at Naruto and nodded._

_**~ For him to be able to think that far ahead wasn't that surprising, really. It was just a bit of a surprise to hear that my own mother held grudges that long. ~**_

"_That brings me to something I wanted to discuss with you as well, Naruto," The elder man said, "The class you graduated from last year is coming to their own graduation soon. You're in the pool for viable genin to be placed in teams. I've already drawn up the lists… would you like to see where you are?" As Sarutobi reached down to open his desk drawer, Naruto smiled and leaned in closer. The boy watched as the elder man unrolled a large scroll. Sarutobi turned the thing towards him to let him read at his own pace, and watched as Naruto's eyes lit up._

_**~ Jiji-san made me promise NOT to mention what I read, but it was interesting. To this day, I don't know what prompted him to switch up the teams at the last minute. Maybe it was just to mess with my head. I'll never know. ~**_

_Over the next week, Naruto began planning his actions for the classroom. Naruto knew he had to thank Sasuke for his concern when he passed out and he still had to find a way to make it up to Hinata for scaring her half to death. _

_Therefore, after the week passed uneventfully, Naruto found himself back in the old classroom, in the seat he'd occupied for the last few months of his academic career. He'd been smart the night before and gone to bed early so he could get to the academy ahead of the rest to reserve his seat. It only took him one glance at the clock on the wall over the teacher's desk to realize he'd made a BIG mistake_

"_Why did I set myself an alarm for six in the damn morning?!" he asked aloud, fully aware that NO ONE was awake to hear him._

_**~ I don't know WHAT came over me at that point, but I felt like being a bit… mischievous. ~**_

_It was at THAT moment that the idea for a prank hit him. He smiled and pulled out a pack of chewing gum from his pocket. He looked around the room until he found an eye-washing station near the door and a bucket underneath. He went over and started filling the bucket with water with one hand; at the same time, he set about removing the sticks of gum from their wrappings with his other hand, one at a time…_

_**~ It certainly wasn't my BEST prank ever, but it still went down in the record books as a real winner. ~**_

_About thirty minutes later, Naruto sat back in his seat, smiling to himself. His latest prank was not nearly the greatest one he'd ever come up with, but it would be enough for today. He kept a steady flow of chakra around the room, keeping the small, trace amounts of water in the now soaked pieces of gum, which he'd hidden with a jutsu on every seat except his own and the teacher's chair, so that they'd stay mostly dry until the students came in. With no more than a simple smirk, he sat back in his seat and relaxed. He knew he could rely on the Kyuubi to keep up the chakra flow; right now, he felt like paying his parents a bit of a visit._

_**~ I spoke with my parents for about an hour and a half, and got to know them a little better. They'd asked the Shinigami for a TV to watch my daily life on, and he'd been happy to grant their wish. ~**_

_To Naruto it felt like a good three-hour nap, but in reality, he'd only been asleep for roughly an hour and a half. He said goodbye to his parents after a nice conversation about Sarutobi and his mother's "list", and then awoke to the sounds of soft voices around the room. All around him, the other students were whispering, "How long has he been here?" He smiled in his "sleep", keeping only one eye partially open to survey the students. As soon as he heard the sound of one chair being moved over, he cut the flow of chakra and allowed the water in the gum sticks to seep through, soaking the things through thoroughly, thought with JUST enough chakra left to keep them hidden, but just enough that he wouldn't be detected._

_**~ I'm still glad to this day that you and Sasuke never got my prank, Hina-chan. I'm glad I was smart enough not to include you in the list of victims. ~**_

_He continued his feigned "sleep" until Iruka walked in with an exuberant call of "GOOD MORNING EVERYONE!" At this, he made a simple motion of waking up, but did not stretch or fake a yawn. He didn't want to seem… suspicious._

"_Alright, class, and Naruto," Iruka said with a smile, "It's finally time. With Naruto having been passed along already, that leaves eight of you to pass. As I call your names, please step into the other room and show the instructor within your best Bunshin, which you have to hold for a full minute." Naruto smiled wide and cancelled his jutsu just as the first name was called. _

_**~ I never really liked Kiba that much. I know he's SUPPOSED to be an Inuzuka, and therefore one of the best trackers we have, but he's too loud and rambunctious. He's no good as a ninja. We're supposed to be quiet and sneaky… not screaming bloody murder going into EVERY mission. Even a deaf man would have heard him coming and gotten out of the way. ~**_

_**- HAH! That's unlikely… The deaf man would have heard him coming and stuck his foot out to trip him up on purpose! -**_

_**~ You're right… That deaf man would want to teach him a lesson. Anyway, for OBVIOUS reasons, I chose HIM as my first target. ~**_

_Kiba Inuzuka, the rowdiest and most annoying boy in class next to Naruto, had no idea why the rest of the class started giggling as he stood and moved toward the front of the class. He suddenly discovered why when he turned around sharply to yell at his classmates, only to be met by a wet smack to the eye that, strangely, sent him flying backwards on his rear. He rolled around for a minute or so, trying desperately to get the small, moist attacker off his eye… only to soon notice that his fingers were getting sticky… and that there were bright, pink strands of something equally sticky attached to them._

_Even Iruka couldn't hold himself back after Kiba fell back and hit the floor. He fell into his chair, laughing, just in time for the rest of the students and the two other chunin examiners to fall back in fits of hysterical laughter._

_**~ It's always amused me how utterly stupid Kiba can be. Iruka-sensei REALLY needed to let loose, so I did the prank more as a favor to him than anything else. ~**_

_By the time the graduation exam was over, however, almost all of the students, save for the few Naruto could stand, had found themselves victims. Meanwhile Iruka and his two aides stared dumbly at them, as one by one each and every student, minus the Uchiha boy and Hyuuga girl, became victims of the "Phantom Gum Prank". Iruka already had an inkling of who was behind it…_

_Unfortunately, he would NEVER know the culprit's identity. He had team announcements to go through._

_**~ This was it: team announcements. The day I'd been waiting for. Of course, first we had to get the other students out of the way. ~**_

"_Alright," Iruka said, "with Team Nine in circulation from last year, nine of you are about to find yourselves in a team. As per the laws, you'll be placed on a three-man cell with one sensei who will oversee your progress henceforth. As I announce your teams, your jonin sensei will walk in and claim you. Teams are in groups of three. Team 7 will be comprised of Kiba Inuzuka, Sasuke Uchiha, and Sakura Haruno, and … Oh wow… why did the council pass that one through… It appears you three will be training under Anko Mitarashi until another jonin sensei can be found. So trust me when I say this, DO NOT DO ANYTHING to make her angry… you may not return otherwise." _

_Immediately the sliding door slammed open, revealing a moderately tall woman in her early twenties, wearing nothing more than a brown trench-coat over light clothing, which was in turn over top of fishnet armor. The woman's short, violet hair was pulled up in the back to form a short, spiky ponytail, while her brown eyes, devoid of pupils, stared across the room._

_**~ Anko=san and I were kindred spirits, in a sense. I had the Kyuubi, and she had Orochimaru-teme's Curse Mark. I really wanted to help her out, but… at the time, I couldn't. For one thing, I wasn't well versed in practical applications of healing jutsu, besides the one I used for myself after the mobs. And since that jutsu was meant solely for healing one's body of PHYSICAL injuries, it wouldn't be useful for helping remove her Mark. For another… she was just WAY TOO SCARY, sometimes. I think she demonstrated that quite well the moment she arrived, and cemented her status to everyone when she called for her team. ~ **_

"_ALRIGHT TWERPS, WHICH OF YOU ARE MY TEAM?!" The woman shouted. The reactions she got from her genin varied. Kiba stood and walked over like a womanizer after his prey, though his legs were shaking in time with his ninken, Akamaru, as the frightened puppy riding in Kiba's shirt quivered visibly. Sasuke rose with that arrogant swagger that the whole class had come to hate, and he strode up with a snide look on his face. Sakura, on the other hand, slowly got up from her chair and made her way toward her sensei with caution, holding her hands balled into fists while shaking visibly._

'_Great,'__ Anko thought, __'I've got a twitchy spaz with an over-active sex drive for one his age. I've also got a smug bastard with a duck's behind for the back of his head and a superiority complex. To top it all off, I've got a pink-headed fangirl with the nervous system and reflexes of a quivering LEAF. What the hell else could be wrong with this set-up?" __Stepping aside, she ordered the three to meet her on the roof in three minutes before vanishing in a swirl of leaves. The three genin ran off to the roof immediately._

_**~ I laughed seeing Kiba's reactions. He was obviously trying to act the Alpha in the situation, but his instincts were telling him not to be tough, but to RUN. He was scared and outmatched; he knew it, he just didn't care. ~**_

_Iruka blinked a couple times, staring blankly at the door as the three genin raced through and slammed it shut, before shaking his head violently and saying, "Well… baring that strange turn of events, let's continue. Team 8 will consist of Choji Akimichi, Shikamaru Nara, and Ino Yamanaka. Your Jonin Sensei will be Asuma Sarutobi." At that, a tall, bearded man strolled through the door with a small grin on his face._

"_Alright, kids, let's get a move on. Meet me at Training Ground 17 in fifteen," Asuma said before he too vanished in a swirl of leaves. The three genin immediately tore off without a second though. After seeing what Team 7's genin got for a teacher…Well, they weren't taking any chance. Iruka nodded_

_**~ Asuma-san seemed like a much nicer person, but, obviously, we weren't getting HIM for a sensei. ~**_

"_Well, with that done, Team 10 will consist of Hinata Hyuuga, Shino Aburame and Naruto Uzumaki. Your sensei is Kurenai Yuuhi, who should be about to-" Iruka was cut off as the door once more slid open to reveal a tall woman in red clothes, covered in long, tattered white bandages. She had long black hair and red eyes with a single ring around the pupil. Unlike both previous jonin before her, Kurenai was wearing a beaming smile on his face._

"_Alright kids, let's get going the sooner we get introductions done, the better off we are," Kurenai said, strolling back through the door without a care in the world. Iruka blinked._

"_Uh… Alright, you heard your sensei kids… get on your way and make us all proud!" Iruka said, amending his earlier thought. With that, the three genin stood and walked out of the room after their new teacher._

_**~ Kurenai-sensei had that way about her… I don't know what it was, but she never seemed to want to hurt us. She just never seemed to know how to word what she said properly. ~**_

_Iruka watched as Naruto walked out of the room and nodded again, thinking, __'I don't know about any of the other genin… but Naruto's team is in for the time of their lives. I get the feeling…'_

Hinata nodded as Naruto finished his tale and set down her brush.

"How's that, Naru-kun?" she asked. Naruto's eyes opened slowly, and, as he rose to his feet, he spun on his heels. The smile Hinata saw on his face told her what she wanted to know before he even opened his mouth.

However, as always, she found hearing him compliment her work was better than reading his smiles and thus beamed back at him as he exclaimed, "Hina-chan, that's PERFECT! No one would be able to tell the difference! Are you sure you haven't done this before?!" She giggled a bit at the compliment and walked to the door.

"H-HEY!" Guren shouted, feeling her arms going numb, "YOU CAN'T JUST LEAVE ME TIED UP HERE! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO EAT?!"

Naruto said nothing, but waited until Hinata was at his side and tossed two kunai. Without a second's hesitation, he activated the seal on the handle of the first and teleported into the cell, grabbing the second and applying a single deft slash to cut the ropes. While still in midair, he threw a third kunai, also with a seal on the handle, back through the bars, and, as Guren turned her head, she watched a beam of orange light materialize into Konoha's Rokudaime Hokage in Hinata's arms seconds later.

She barely had time to react before a set of prison clothes flew through the bars, slamming into her face with a dull "thump". Pulling them off, she saw Naruto once again with his back to her.

"Get dressed and sit on your cot; dinner will be shortly. And if you so much as try ANYTHING that involves chakra, that seal on your back will cause you to experience the worst pain you've ever experienced at ANYONE'S hands. Think clearly and carefully before acting unless you're a fan of pain," Naruto saw monotonously as he and his wife stepped back toward the lift to the surface, leaving Guren alone in her cell.

"Uzumaki… Naruto…" Guren said slowly, "just what in Kami's name ARE you?"

~ THE END… FOR NOW… ~

Hope you liked it! ^_^Chapter 7 soon to come!


	7. INTO THE DREAMSCAPE & TEAM TESTING

[A/N]Here comes Chapter 7. Once again, if you're going to review, PLEASE make an account so I can properly reply to you. They're free to make, last I checked, so you don't have to pay for anything. ^_^ [A/N]

_**~~~PRIVATE QUARTERS, HOKAGE'S TOWER ~~~**_

Naruto and Hinata took roughly half an hour to go from the prison to their room in the Hokage's Tower; it was a trip that would have been considerably shorter had Naruto's ankles not flared up a couple extra times.

The doctors still couldn't understand, even to this day, how, even with all of his massive powers and heavenly strength, Naruto had been unable to heal his ankle problems. He had informed the doctors and med-nin, several times, of how much of his heavenly abilities he'd used to bring a target in alive, but even will all that, he still couldn't seem to repair his burnt muscles and frayed nerves.

Tsunade, the previous Hokage, had examined him when she first returned to Konoha, and had shared the secret of her findings with him under the pretense that NONE of what she told him left the room.

Naruto had been born with misaligned and tangled chakra coils. When Naruto voiced his confusion, Tsunade had been only too happy to rib him for five minutes before explaining the nature of his predicament. The state of his coils was so bad at the time that the points that should have connected his system to his hands instead connected them to his feet, and vice-verse. Naruto was the ONLY PERSON in the known universe with that ailment.

Which meant that regardless of how much raw healing power he'd possessed as a greenhorn academy student, Naruto's chakra coils had been in a tangled mess at the time of his incident. Kyuubi's sealing had only worsened the problem, causing his coils to misalign even further, so that, while his hands now had the coils in the right places, the rest of his body was completely out of sorts. To have survived as long as he had was not only a scientific miracle, but also a medical anomaly, because the chakra in his coils needed somewhere to go. However, as they had no chakra points other than his hands, and barely any use for years, his chakra should have exploded out of his skin to release the pressure.

However, in terms of his incident with the errant Uchiha, his feet, having the chakra coils in his hands and feet reversed, had no way to fix his ankles. By the time the doctors could do anything, the most they could possibly do was patch up his ankles and let him rest for a few days.

A lmost eight months later came the Chuunin Exams, and Team Ten's first encounter with Orochimaru, the Snake Sannin, and the addition of the Five Element Seal to Naruto's system. Unbeknownst to them, however, the addition of Orochimaru's Five Element Seal had actually benefitted Naruto's body, as it had taken the role of an intermediary force that had aligned several of his more important chakra points, granting him the ability to vent his chakra at a more rapid pace through water walking. With his coils working a bit better at this point, he'd been able to barrel through the Third Round Preliminaries as if he was strolling through the park. However, following the Third Round and Orochimaru's failed attempt to raze the village, Jiraiya had taken him on a quick journey and removed the second seal. Not realizing the damage he'd done, Jiraiya had watched as Naruto spent five days in excruciating pain, struggling to find a way to help him.

Now, in the present as he was, he found his mind jostled from his idle thoughts by the sudden dive bomb Hinata performed as she ran from the adjacent bathroom, clad in her nightgown, and slammed onto the mattress. Naruto found himself about two feet in the air from the bounce created from her impact. When he landed back on the bed, he discovered she was pumping chakra into the bed frame, effectively turning the bed into a miniature trampoline for two.

The air in the village below soon became filled with the joyous giggles and laughter of a newlywed couple as they bounced off their trampoline bed, swinging pillows at each other like six-year-old children at a sleep-over.

~MEANWHILE~

In her house toward the shopping district, Tsunade sat back on her bed, head resting against the headboard, enjoying one of her guilty pleasures: poorly written cheesy romance novels that were more akin to soft-core porn in how they always seemed to deviate from the story to a steamy sexual encounter every other chapter. Surprisingly enough, her favorite series was written and published by her own fellow Sannin, Jiraiya. She'd never be able to work up the guts to tell him to his face, but she had his collected works, as well as a few spin-offs, sealed into a storage seal on the back of her headboard.

As the sound of the newlywed's midnight romp reached her ears, Tsunade smiled and placed her book on the nightstand, slowly getting up from her bed to stand by the window and stare up at the tower, almost longingly.

"You two… you'd better cool it…" she said to no one in a warning tone, "Because if you go any further, I'll have to get Jiraiya in here…" A blush overtook her face and, with a gentle bite of her upper lip, she turned on her heels and walked back to her bed.

~ELSEWHERE~

In his own temporary apartment on the edge of town, Jiraiya of the Sannin sat awake at his desk with a blank scroll open in front of him. He was working on yet another manuscript for one of his infamous books when the sound of mirthful laughter, he grinned and started writing, deciding against his better judgment, to write his next book based on whatever he heard from the Hokage's Tower.

Grinning perversely from ear to ear, Jiraiya's pen flew as he mumbled, "Sorry, gaki, you deserve this one. You're going to make me rich!"

Jiraiya didn't stop writing until an hour later when a knock came at his door. Acting against his instincts, which told him to hide his writings and himself, he left his scroll on the desk and walked over to open the door, only to be tackled to the floor and be treated to a heated loving, courtesy of a flushed Tsunade. Amidst a heated kiss, he stole a glance at his manuscript and, with a shake of his hand, decided to forego any further dealings with his ink that night.

_**~~~ MEANWHILE, KONOHAGAKURE TOP-PRIORITY PRISON, MAXIMUM SECUIRTY ZONE FLOOR THREE ~~~**_

A clone of Naruto sat in front of the bars to Guren's cell, staring at the woman intently as she lay on her cot.

The clone almost jumped a bit when the woman called over, "I'm awake; if you've got something to say, SAY IT." The clone nodded.

"The boss told me to come down here and keep an eye on you," The clone said, his eyes never leaving the sight of Guren's orange-and-black-clad back.

She got up and turned to face him, facing him with a smile as she sat down and said, "Is that so? Well, since you've obviously got your master's memories, why don't you continue the story he was telling me? I'm rather interested to hear what he did next.

The clone twitched in place for a moment before the sounds of passionate love-making penetrated the walls of the prison and reached their ears. Guren's expression dropped, turning form a smile to a look of disgusted horror.

"They're doing THAT without any sound seals?" she demanded, "MY GOD! How inconsiderate can they be?" The clone's sudden outburst of laughter caught her attention, and, when asked what he found so funny, the clone reigned himself in and stood up.

"You seem to enjoy being the pot calling the kettle black, huh?" the clone asked, smirking when Guren's face gained a look of confusion.

"You don't see the irony in your words at all?" The clone asked, "You crashed Boss' wedding, stole his bride, tried to KILL his bride, and, after they forced you to use that crystal coffin of yours, you come bursting out the second they decide to try and have a little fun in the woods. You nearly ruined their wedding day, SINGLE-HANDEDLY, and yet, now that they're above ground and spending the night together in the throes of passion, you're going to go off on them for that TOO? What the hell else do you WANT?"

The clone's mouth twisted into a grin, while the rest of his face gained an expression that crossed the borders of rage, disbelief, and amazement. He slammed up against the bars and grabbed two of them, each at arm's length. Guren stumbled back at the shout of the last word, falling on her butt on the cot. The clone released the bars and returned his face to a tepid smirk.

"But, since you've got nothing else to do here," the clone said, sitting with his back against the bars, "I suppose I could tell you the boss' story, if only to alleviate our collective boredom. Let's see…"

The clone seemed to spasm for a moment before its head shifted slightly and lolled off to one side. Guren was about to go and kick the clone when a splitting pain threatened to rend her skull in twain. Lying down, she immediately passed into a silent sleep.

There, in her dreamscape, was Naruto, who beckoned to a seat next to him. Guren approached slowly, noticing that on Naruto's other side was what appeared to be a video projector; she suddenly realized that he was going to SHOW her the memory through her dream.

"Just keep quiet, and I'll narrate for you," he said, "Hinata-chan and I finished our little romp five minutes ago; we're both sleeping right now."

At that moment, Hinata appeared from thin air and a pproached, swatting Naruto on the head while saying, "And I wasn't invited to the screening because?" Naruto winced.

"I didn't want to disturb your dreams, Hina-chan," he said. He smiled when she nodded and summoned a second and third chair and sat down. Guren approached and sat down.

"So," Naruto said, "where was I…"

* * *

_**CHAPTER 7: INTO THE DREAMSCAPE & TEAM TESTING**_

**OP: "SOUL DYNAMITE" - ACCESS**

* * *

_**~ It was a strange location, for sure. I mean, who would ever conceive of bringing a group of impressionable children to a small house on the edge of town? ~ **_

_Nestled on the edge of town was a small house, in which sat Kurenai. The red-eyed woman smiled at her genin and surveyed each one._

_However, in her head, she was silently gauging each one, __'Shino Aburame, member of the Aburame clan, known for their control of chakra-eating insects. Looks at home with the other two, reasons unknown. Request for team transfer is unlikely. Hinata Hyuuga, member of the renowned Hyuuga clan, known for their Byakugan dojutsu and Jyuken taijutsu style… she seems level-headed enough, but not around the third of the group… According to her file, she's not at the desired level of proficiency with her clan's techniques. We can surely fix this problem; Request for team transfer is unnecessary.'_

_**~ The subtle look Kurenai-sensei gave me was … creepy, to say the least. It felt like she was trying to pull my soul out through my eyes. ~**_

_Finally, reaching Naruto, she seemed to almost lose her smile as she thought, __'Finally, Uzumaki Naruto… an enigma. His file is abysmal, to say the least, but I suspect I know the reason why… In the end, anything and everything about this one is unknown, so anything he's got hidden up his sleeves will stay that way unless otherwise eased out. He seems upbeat enough, if his interactions with his teammates on the way here are any indication… He also seems… scarred, in a way… Somehow, that look in his eyes is one I know all too well… Well, might as well get on with the introductions and properly judge these three.'_

_With that, Kurenai looked first to Shino and said, "Alright Mr. Shades, you start. Name, interests, hobbies, likes and dislikes."_

_**~ Shino and his entire clan have always kind of freaked me out. I mean, he bundles up like that all year round, even if it's the DEAD of summer, and they NEVER show their eyes… In Shino's case, it's more personal, but… ~**_

_Shino simply exhaled and deadpanned, "Name: Aburame Shino. No discernible interests just yet, but they may arise later. My hobbies include tending to my hive and expanding my arsenal of jutsu. I like taking care of my insects and have no dislikes." Kurenai nodded._

_**~ That and his way of speaking is just grating. I know he's tried to make strides to improve, but… he's still horribly monotonous. ~**_

'_He's definitely motivated, though to what end, I can't tell. The kid's like a machine or something…__' Kurenai thought as she turned to look Hinata in the eyes and said, "Alright Indigo, you're next."_

_**~ I smiled a bit inside when Sensei asked you to speak. I guess you can chalk it up to your intense cuteness…~**_

_**- Do you mean to tell me THAT'S why you took so long to ask me out? You were "blinded my intense cuteness" every time you saw me? - **_

_**~ … Yes…? ~**_

_**- That's so cliché… but I still love you, Naruto. -**_

_**~I love you too. Still, you were SO cute! ~**_

_Hinata straightened up and, looking from Shino to Naruto, she blushed madly when his gaze met hers._

"_Uh… uhm, m-my n-n-name is Hyuuga H-h-Hinata… My interests are…" Hinata said, looking to Naruto again, "…My hobbies are baking and g-gardening. I-I-I'm not c-c-comfortable talking about m-m-my l-likes, but I dislike anyone who thinks they're better than my or blames fate for something they can't control. I wish to abolish the Caged Bird seal and unite the two halves of the Hyuuga Clan once and for all." During the final portion of her statement, Hinata seemed to lose her discomfort and focused solely on her beliefs, her eyes trained on her sensei as her face took on a dark, serious expression and her blush rapidly receded; once she finished, however, she quickly reverted back to a full blush while avoiding eye contact with Naruto. _

'_That's odd… her file didn't mention anything about that… neither did it mention anything about her apparent feelings for her teammate… I'd best delve deeper into this matter later,'__ Kurenai thought silently, nodding to Hinata while turning her gaze to Naruto and saying, "Alright Whisker-Face, you're up."_

_**~ I wanted to try and be a bit covert in showing off; at the time, I only wanted sensei to see, for fear it'd mess up any dynamic we'd produce between the four of us later. ~**_

_Naruto nodded and, focusing solely on Kurenai's eyes, activated his Hoshigan in a way that allowed ONLY her to see them, and then said, "Uzumaki Naruto, last member of my family. My interests lie in learning everything I can about my family history and living up to their expectations. My hobbies include studying jutsu, practicing advanced chakra control, and showing anyone who hates me why they shouldn't underestimate me. My likes include anyone who can stand up for themselves and protect their friends, as well as RAMEN. My dislikes include the Uchiha moron and anyone who treats others badly for things they couldn't control. My dream is to learn my family's special final jutsu and devise a way to use it without the … unfortunate mortal side-effect kicking in." With the end of his statement, Naruto deactivated his Hoshigan, and then looked across to each of his teammates in turn before returning his gaze to his teacher._

_**~ Sensei's stunned look spoke volumes. I'm just surprised you and Shino didn't pick up on it. ~**_

_**- Might I remind you, Naruto, that it was very difficult for me to meet your gaze and hold it for long periods back then. I was too shy; one look was enough to make me pass out cold for hours with a full-face blush. -**_

_**~Don't worry; I remember perfectly. That's STILL one of the reasons I fell in love with you… TOO CUTE! ~**_

_*** Ahem… enough banter, please? Continue the story, please. ***_

_**~ As if you have the right or authority to command me to- ~**_

_**- Naruto, please just continue the story; if not for her sake, then for mine, so I can go back to cuddling with you in bed. Having to keep that focused frown on my face is going to leave ugly wrinkles! -**_

_**~ Yes, dear. And don't worry… I'll still love you, no matter how many wrinkles you gain. ~**_

'_THIS KID HAS A DOJUTSU?! Oh boy, when I get hold of the council member that messed up this kid's file, I'm going to make them sit down with him and PROPERLY UPDATE IT. However, that's really worrying me… his eyes gained a golden star around the pupils… That doesn't fit the description of any of the dojutsu I read about in the Ninja Academy's library… I've already seen what the Sharingan and Byakugan look like, and the Rinnegan's appearance is said to be a set of concentric circles around the pupils… this kid doesn't have any of those… WHAT IS GOING ON?!'__ Kurenai wondered to herself._

"_Alright, that's good. So, from what I've got on the three of you, you're all no more than acquaintances from the academy, correct?" she asked. The three nodded. Kurenai nodded and pointed out back._

"_Alright then, follow me. The area out behind us is an empty field, so we're going to get a handle on your abilities to start off with," Kurenai said. At Shino's nervous twitch, she shook her head._

_**~ I found it odd that Shino was concerned. He seemed fine with JUST talking, so this shouldn't have been so much an issue for him. ~**_

"_It's nothing too strenuous, Shino-kun," she said, her smile never once leaving her lips, "It's just a simple, straightforward display of what we can expect to see on the battlefield when we're eventually sent into combat. I only want to see three techniques maximum: your weakest one, your strongest one, and one that stops in the middle." At this, Shino nodded contentedly and followed Kurenai out the door. Naruto stood, and, turning on his heel, extended his left arm down to offer a hand to Hinata._

_**- You always did impress me with how chivalrous you were… The fact that you haven't lost that today is even more impressive. -**_

_**~ Well, I thank you for the compliment, Hina-chan. However, I'd better continue the story soon, or I'll be chewed out AGAIN by our prisoner for extended banter. ~**_

"_May I help you, Hinata-chan?" Naruto said. Hinata could barely control herself as he gave her a warm, beaming smile; she almost lost it and fainted right there, but she managed to pull it together fast enough to avoid that. Instead, she simply reached her right hand up to grab his, slowly standing as he held on and slowly pulled her up to her feet. The two looked at each other and smiled before walking out to catch up with Kurenai and Shino._

_Outside, Naruto saw that Kurenai had pre-prepared the area for the demonstrations, leaving out three standing practice dummies._

_**~ I had expected some sort of specialized Genin test… but I suppose we can count our mission to Wave as our test, huh? ~**_

"_Alright, Hinata-san, you're up first. Show us what you can do," Kurenai said. Hinata looked up to her sensei and nodded. With a half-glance at Naruto, she bowed her head. When she next looked up, there was a hint of killing intent coming off her; her face had gone from a broad smile to a full-on wicked smirk. She dashed in and pummeled the first dummy hard in the torso, before settling into the typical stance of her family's Jyuken style._

"_JYUKENPO: HAKKE SANJUNI SHO*!" Hinata shouted, lashing out at the dummy as an array of markings formed around her, ending with a green-and-white yin-yang symbol forming under her feet. Naruto and company watched, shocked, as Hinata delivered in five steps a furious set of thirty-two two-fingered strikes to the dummy. The combined force of each strike was so great that the dummy snapped off its stalk and flew away on the last strike. Hinata, however, was NOT letting anything get away. With a quick burst of speed, she got around in front of the dummy so that instead of flying away from her, it was now flying straight at her. With a small, demented smile, Hinata allowed her chakra to flow into her hands, causing the visages of two large lion heads to form around her now curled fists. _

"_JYUHO SOSHIKEN!" she shouted, slamming both hands into the dummy's middle. _

_Naruto watched, dumbfounded, as the training dummy EXPLODED into millions of little pieces that rained down over the area. Hinata raised her left hand and caught one of the wood chips between two fingers as she returned to her team. However, in a deft show of her darker sense of humor, she opened her mouth and used the chip of wood to pick her teeth. She stopped in front of Kurenai and pulled the chip from between her teeth, revealing a large fragment of a tooth stuck to what appeared to be a chunk of potato._

_**~ I'd always been afraid of Anko, but in that moment, you blew my notions about HER threw the roof. In THAT moment, you were scarier than the thought of facing down Orochimaru alone. I made a mental note to do all I could NOT to make you angry. ~**_

_**- That is a very good policy to live by. I'm surprised you came to that on your own. Not many boys do. -**_

_**~ I stand by my claim that I WAS NOT like most boys at that age… and I stand by this claim: I'm not at ALL like many men. I prefer to think I've learned from the mistakes of others. ~**_

_*** That's great and all, but if you're going to talk back and forth, you can just stop the show right now and go back to bed. I came here to hear a story, not the idle banter of a husband and wife. ***_

_**- … Naruto… I hope you didn't have too many plans for this one… because she is most likely NOT going to survive through the night. If she speaks ill of either of us once more when SHE'S the one at fault, I'll not only rip her head off in her dreams, I'll do the same at the prison in the morning before we depart for our honeymoon. -**_

_**~ Actually, I hope you don't mind if I join you. There are quite a few lessons in MANNERS this one was CLEARLY not taught under Hebi-teme's employ. ~**_

_*** I'll stay quiet now. ***_

_**~- GOOD. ~ Now, Dear, please continue your story. -**_

_**~On the double! ~**_

"_FINALLY!" She exclaimed with relief, "That thing's been in there since my last spar with Neji-kun three weeks ago… he doesn't know how to go easy," Hinata said, an innocent smile gracing her lips. Naruto stared dumbly, while Kurenai simply gaped in shock at her student's violent outburst. Shino looked from Hinata to the piles of wood chips littering the ground._

'_Interesting…'__ Shino said, '__so she represses her negative emotions and uses them to empower her techniques. That's one thing I'll have to avoid and watch for later…'_

'_What on EARTH?!'__ Kurenai raged, _'her father never told me about… no, wait, think calmly, Kurenai… he probably doesn't even know about this side of her… Maybe I should inform him… NO! Wait, a better idea would be to let her show her entire family in a bout against Neji…'

'_WHOA...' Naruto thought, __'Who would have known that she gets stronger when she's mad?'__ He made a quick mental note to remember that if he ever found himself forced to fight her._

_Kurenai finally managed to snap out of her shocked state and turned to Shino, saying, "Alright Shino-kun, you're up." Shino nodded and walked up to the second dummy. Holding his arms out forward, he smirked to himself as two large swarms of insects began to seep out of his sleeves. The bugs shot out and latched onto the dummy._

_**~ Shino's bugs made me queasy. I swear anything that EATS chakra after entering something else's body is just too gross for words. ~**_

_Feeling the need to add verbal commentary, Shino began, "Each Aburame clansman is gifted with a special ability when it comes to their bugs. My mother's is capture, as her bugs are larger than normal and can actually restrict the movement of an opponent; my father's specialty is what he calls "damage over time", as his insects carry large amounts of venom in their systems which grant him a natural immunity to most poisons."_

"_Mine, on the other hand," Shino continued, "is what I call "Full Tracking", in that regardless of the state of my opponent, if they happen to leave an area, my bugs can sniff out that person's chakra ad follow them, leading me right back to them. Also, if there are hints of someone's chakra in an inanimate object, my bugs can ingest this chakra and analyze it, then return to me and tell me if I'm walking into an ambush. As it stands…" Shino took a deep breath as ten beetles returned from the dummy and settled by his left ear, then turned and pointed at his sensei, "You left traces of your chakra in each dummy to gauge our power, didn't you?"_

_Kurenai stared at Shino for several seconds, before she discovered it becoming painful to breathe. She didn't have to wonder why for long._

_**~ And as if you weren't scary enough before, you had to trump yourself, huh? ~ **_

_**- My apologies for thinking our sensei had been trying to sleight us somehow. I'm sorry if living with my father for so many years left me more than just a TAD BIT paranoid. -**_

_**~ I didn't mean any insult, Hina-chan. It's just… You were always so cute… that display in front of everyone was just … a little TOO much. But anyways, back to the story. ~**_

"_SENSEI…" Hinata said, her voice now carrying a dark, angry tone laced with venom while waves of pitch-black darkness rolled off her, "IS THAT TRUE?" _

_Without a second's thought, Naruto immediately walked behind Kurenai's back so he was directly behind Hinata and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. The sudden contact was enough to shock Hinata out of her killing intent-fuelled rage. In fact, he smiled a bit as he felt her exhale deeply and slightly tightened his hold when her shoulders relaxed._

"_N-Naruto-kun…" Hinata stammered, gaining a deep crimson flush as the blood rushed to her face. Naruto smiled._

_**~ Everyone used to wonder how we were able to do that, even though before being on a team, we barely knew each other. ~**_

_**- It's a simple thing to figure out, Naru-kun… we were both very lonely souls. You were lonely because of the Kyuubi, and I was lonely because of my family. All we were doing was looking for someone to ease the pain… I felt I understood you so well back then… I'm glad I did, more or less. -**_

_**~ I had that same thought. I've known for many years now. It's a very heartening thing to know that at any time, all we need to come down from an angry high or come up from a deep depression is to just be around each other…**_

_**However, I get the feeling our "guest" is getting bored. Back to the story… ~**_

"_Just relax, Hinata-chan, OK? There's no reason to lose your cool right now, alright?" Naruto asked. Hinata turned on her heels and gave him a hurt look._

"_What do you mean? If her chakra's in those dummies, who knows what else could be going on!" She argued. Naruto shook his head._

"_No, Hinata-chan," Naruto said, spinning her around to look her in the eyes, "there's nothing else going on. I can tell. Sensei has no ulterior motives. I think this is just her way of figuring out how to train each of us properly to work better as a team. If that's the case, she needs to know our strengths and weaknesses to know how hard to work us. From what I've seen, you don't need that much training… You're strong on your own."_

_Kurenai was stunned yet again. She may have only started a year ago, but even so, the only reason her last team had failed was because their abilities were less than sub-par. She'd sent them back for another year to have them work harder… and they hadn't passed the test. Now, an eleven-year-old with a mysterious dojutsu was figuring her out on guesswork? How much more was this kid hiding?_

"_Shino-san," she heard Naruto say, "Is there anything else you're able to do with your bugs?" Shino thought for a moment, then shook his head._

"_Not at the present moment. I will be making strides to improve my skills and hone my abilities to greater heights, though," Shino said in his signature monotonous drawl. Naruto nodded._

"_I guess that means I'm up…" Naruto said, before releasing Hinata and turning to Kurenai and dropping the bomb:_

_**~ I'm sure that little grenade threw her off… if her reaction was any hint, that is. Heh… ~**_

"_**Sensei, I have nothing to show you."**_

_Kurenai snapped out of her shock and stared at the boy._

"_What do you mean, you have nothing to show me?! You don't have a choice! You can't keep what you've got a secret from me, Naruto-kun! You have to show me!" she demanded. Naruto shook his head. _

_**~ Once again, I found myself falling victim to "mouth-moving-faster-than-the-brain-can-follow Jutsu". I really should have learned much quicker to word my sentences properly. ~**_

"_Perhaps I phrased that wrong… It's not that I don't WANT to show you; I actually don't have anything I CAN show you. As I said in my introduction, one of my hobbies is reading up on the application and theories of different Jutsu. I know, for instance, that a Bunshin can perform differently depending on where it's used and what it's made of, and that depending on how you mould the chakra, you can make a fire-style jutsu BECOME something entirely different while still in a spherical state. It's all about the degree of shape control and elemental manipulation; the more complex the thing you wish to make, the more chakra you need and the more you have to concentrate to make it work," Naruto said, taking a breath._

"_I also happen to know that while certain things are easier for me with this knowledge, I'm left in the dust when it comes to HOW I use it.. I happen to know that my affinities are many, but vary in strength. I have an extremely high wind affinity, and strong water and fire affinities. I'm decent in terms of Lightning, but not so great in Earth. Technically speaking, I could be capable of pulling off anything from a High-D-rank to low-C-rank Doton Jutsu to a Kage-rank Futon jutsu. However, as I still don't know to actually USE jutsu, despite my many attempts to work on chakra control, I always wind up using the proper hand seals, but I push too much chakra into it and make it explode in my face. I can do it… It'll just take time. I'm what you would call … a "gradual learner"; I won't give you results immediately, but the more I'm left to grow, the stronger you'll be able to WATCH me become," Naruto finished._

_Kurenai stood, stunned for the umpteenth time that day. Sure, she'd had kids mouth off at her, or boys attempt to win her favor with smooth talk. WHAT in the name of the Shinigami WAS this kid?_

_With a quick shake of her head, Kurenai returned to the normal world and looked the blonde boy up and down._

_**~ I had a strange ability to stun Kurenai-sensei out of her skull, now that I think about it… I guess, other than our later dating, that's what made being a member of Team 10 so much fun. ~**_

"_Alright, you've got me Naruto-kun. For now, we'll leave it. If anyone has some sort of special power they'd like the rest of us to know about, speak now," she said. Hinata nodded and stepped up._

"_That was actually directed at Naruto, Hinata-chan," Kurenai said, "Everyone knows you have the Byakugan and everyone knows what it can do. But Naruto-kun seems to be hiding something profound from all of us. You've already showed us what you can do, and Shino-kun verbally displayed his talents. Naruto-kun however claims to have nothing to his name in the way of combat skill or jutsu. There's a reason, and I want to hear it."_

_**~ She was a little too pushy for her own good, I swear. ~**_

_Naruto took a deep breath, exhaled, and said, "There's no way around this, is there?" Kurenai shook her head._

"_Alright, follow me inside. What I have to tell you can't be heard by ANYONE else," Naruto said, sounding slightly ominous. Kurenai motioned to Hinata and Shino to follow and soon, all three were inside the building. They all sat around in a circle, and Naruto closed his eyes._

_When he opened them, Kurenai feigned surprise and gasped a bit when his cerulean eyes gained a single golden star circling around the pupil. Shino tried to silently rationalize what he'd just witnessed; Hinata, however, seemed a little more drawn in._

"_The-The Hoshigan?!" she cried, almost falling on her back as she moved to jump to her feet, but missed her left foot's destination and tripped. She managed to right herself before she fell and sat back down._

"_You know what that is, Hinata-chan?" Shino asked, sounding a bit perplexed._

_**~ And once again, you surprised me, which was always a good thing. ~**_

_Hinata nodded and said, "Yes. I once asked father if there were any ways to make the Byakugan grow. When I first asked, he simply pushed me aside and brushed it off. However, after a week of asking, he finally sat me down and explained it. He told me that the Byakugan, like the Sharingan, has three stages of growth: the Byakugan, Benihana Byakugan, and Tenshi Byakugan. With the second stage, the eye's color changes to somewhat resemble the Sharingan, but instead of a black design on a red eye, the eye color darkens just a bit while gaining an image of a crimson rose petal. This removes the bearer's blind-spot and enhances the ability to perceive the body's chakra pathways, allowing one to see where they couldn't see before, as well as increasing their physical abilities. Where before a Byakugan wielder could simply shut down a chakra point of their choice, bearers of the Benihana Byakugan could actually cause severe damage to them as well."_

"_As for the Tenshi Byakugan, he hesitated at first. Apparently, it increases the abilities the user had before to almost inhuman degrees, to the point where poking someone could destroy a fair-sized section of their chakra network. The only way to tell if someone with a Byakugan has the final form is to look them straight in the eyes; I was told that if you look and can see either a halo effect in their eyes or an angel's wing design, they've got it. The Benihana also reduces the visibility of the veins around the user's eyes when activated. The Tenshi completely negates it, meaning that not even ONE vein will appear. As he told me, only a few people in the Main and Branch families are able to unlock the second form, myself, Neji-kun, and my little sister, Hanabi, included. However, he said that I, and I alone, would be able to surpass it and activate its evolution. Naruto-kun somehow has that evolution…" Hinata finished. Naruto decided to take over from here._

_**~ Your description of your eyes and their upgrades was quite the knockout. I hadn't been expecting that much information at once, but I had a feeling that was about as far as your father was going to fill you in. ~**_

"_Thank you, Hinata-can… it's always good to know that another teammate is able to achieve the same things I can eventually… We'll really have to work you hard to get you there, huh?" he said innocently. Hinata, for some unknown reason, suddenly blushed and promptly passed out._

_Kurenai motioned for Naruto to continue._

_Naruto nodded and said, "Strictly speaking, My Hoshigan was not, as far as I know, the result of an evolved Byakugan. It came from a distant cousin… who I watched die in my arms just over a year ago. Did you hear about the guy Kozue who was admitted to the village morgue, sensei?" Kurenai thought for a moment and nodded. Naruto nodded back and continued._

"_He was that cousin. He was a cousin of Yondaime-sama… a cousin of my father, the Yondaime," Naruto said._

_He was surprised when Kurenai started chuckling. His surprise, however, turned to anger and frustration as she burst out laughing._

_**~ That tore it. I'd been willing to overlook her taking us to the edge of the village, and I'd been only too willing to give her a bye on the dummies. However, laughing at my heritage was one thing I could NOT forgive. I still haven't forgiven her, in a way… ~**_

"_Y-YOU, THE SON OF THE YONDAIME, THE YELLOW FLASH OF KONOHA?! NOT LIKELY!" Kurenai shouted. She stopped abruptly when Shino reached over and swatted her across the back of the head. She was about to reprimand Shino for his action when she felt a sudden drop in temperature and a sudden spike in killing intent from Naruto's direction._

"_HOW DARE YOU SPIT ON MY FATHER'S LEGACY LIKE THAT! JUST BECAUSE I DON'T HAVE HIS SURNAME, YOU ASSUME I'M MAKING IT UP, RIGHT?" Naruto exploded, the killing intent now firing off in waves off his body with every other word he said. Regardless of his stoic appearance, Shino was shaking in his clothes from sheer terror. However, the fact alone that his teammate was leveling murderous glares at their sensei wasn't the only reason; the massive blast of killer intent had caused a quarter of his hive to pass on._

_**~ I was SO glad that Shino was able to be the voice of reason in that instance. ~**_

_**- Don't roll your eyes like that, Naru-kun. There's no need to be sarcastic either; remember… I was unconscious at the time. -**_

_**~ I know… it just bugs me that it took SHINO to get her to amend her statement, even if he only did it to save his own hide. ~**_

"_You may want to amend your statement quickly, sensei," Shino said, feeling his hive's numbers drop rapidly, "Before he makes me useless as a ninja!" Kurenai nodded. _

"_NARUTO, STOP! I'M SORRY; IT JUST SEEMED LIKE AN ABSURD CLAIM, IS ALL! I BELIEVE YOU, REALLY!" Kurenai shouted. Naruto seemed to calm down. What no one noticed was that the multiple waves of killing intent had awoken Hinata, who had crept silently over behind Naruto._

_Naruto was about to release another blast of killing intent when he felt a pair of arms wrap around his shoulders. He slowly turned his head and found himself looking into Hinata's eyes._

_**~ I didn't understand why your hug was so soothing… I understand it better now. ~**_

"_Calm, Naruto-kun, calm," she said gently, "I know you're mad, but she doesn't need to die now, alright? We still need a sensei. I don't think you want to be spending a whole other year BACK in the academy, or worse, in a jail cell because you couldn't control yourself, right?" Naruto calmed down and nodded, making sure to thank her so only she could hear him. When she let go, Kurenai was almost sitting again._

'_How are they able to do that?' the red-eyed woman wondered, 'They don't seem to have any friendly connection to each other AT ALL… so how is it they can calm each other down like that?'_

_Naruto turned and smiled to Hinata before turning back to Kurenai._

"_How much about my eyes do you know, Hinata-chan?" he asked off-handedly._

"_Almost nothing, Naruto-kun," she replied, "Otou-sama never said more than just the name." Naruto nodded._

"_Alright, then I'll fill in the blanks for you," Naruto said, taking the next fifteen minutes to explain the basics of his powers._

_**~ It came easy, explaining my eyes for sensei and Shino. I still wanted to hurt Sensei, though… Iknew I couldn't, so I let it go. ~**_

_Kurenai's eyes nearly exploded out of her head. Shino, however, seemed intrigued._

"_Explain what that means, Naruto-san. I don't think I've ever heard of anything along those lines. What does it mean to have the "privilege" of signing these contracts?" Shino asked, snapping Kurenai back out of her stupor._

_**~ For as smart as he was, Shino wasn't very perceptive at the time. ~**_

_**- I just don't think he fully understood without an explanation, Naru-kun. It was a massive bombshell; you have to admit that. -**_

_**~ I guess you have a point. He couldn't have known without me telling him. That's one's yours, Hina-chan. ~**_

_**- Thank you. -**_

_**~And… back to the story. ~**_

_Once more, Naruto spent another fifteen minutes clearing the cliff notes of his powers. Shino nodded._

"_That's very interesting, Naruto-san. You might just wind up being the power-man of our unit!" Shino said with a hint of awe showing in his voice. Kurenai tried not to show her shock; instead, she chose to revert to her earlier smile._

"_Does ANYTHING EVER happen the easy way for you?" she asked, chuckling a bit when Naruto shrugged his shoulders, "Well, it will ensure things won't be dull, I can say that. Well, let's go see Hokage-sama and see if there's a mission we can take as a team." The three genin nodded and followed their sensei as she opened the door of the building and led them out, closing the door behind them as they strolled through the village.~_

* * *

Naruto shut off the projector and stepped away, taking Hinata by the hand as they, along with the projector and the three chairs, vanished into thin air. This, unfortunately, had the undesired effect of dropping Guren on her rear with a hard thump that was enough to wake her up. She was up JUST long enough to fire off a string of cruses she knew only SHE could hear, and then she promptly fell back asleep.

_**~~~MEANWHILE, PRIVATE QUARTERS, HOKAGE'S TOWER ~~~**_

Naruto's eyes opened slowly. To his surprise, he found himself gazing into the none-too-happy eyes of Hinata, whose expression was one of frustration and confusion.

"And what, pray tell, was the idea behind leaving me behind to tell that evil witch your story?" Hinata asked. Naruto winced.

"I'm really sorry; my clone was confused and sent me a mental alert asking me what to do. I figured, since we were going to sleep anyway, that I'd at least grant her request," Naruto said. Hinata pouted.

"And, given the way our eyes and chakra are linked,' she said, her voice not losing any of its exasperated tone, "you didn't stop to think that our dreamscapes are similarly connected? How did you expect to leave me behind? I was bound to find you sooner or later."

Naruto visibly sagged in defeat, saying, "Alright. I admit it; I made a stupid move. I should have asked you first, or at least brought you along before going. I didn't mean to upset you at all, I swear! Can you forgive me?"

Hinata moved her left arm to tap her index finger against her lips in mock thought for a moment.

Finally, with a happy smile, she cuddled up close and said, "Yeah. I forgive you. JUST DON'T EVER LET IT HAPPEN AGAIN."

Naruto gulped loudly and nodded his affirmation. With that, the newlywed couple settled back down and fell asleep.

~ THE END… FOR NOW… ~

Hope you liked it! ^_^


	8. RETURN OF ICE & SETTING OUT TO NAMI

[A/N]Here comes Chapter 8. Once again, if you're going to review, PLEASE make an account so I can properly reply to you. They're free to make, last I checked, so you don't have to pay for anything. ^_^ [A/N]

_**~~~SOUTHERN GATES OF KONOHAGAKURE~~~**_

Two figures, dressed in long, billowing, hooded cloaks, touched down on the turf outside Konoha's southern gate. They didn't even have to show their identification to the on-duty guards; the two figures had become well known in the village in the recent years. Not only that, but on a smaller scale, many of the smaller ninja villages had come to fear these two.

The taller of the two tossed his hood back, letting out a mane of spiky black hair that settled around his neck with a slight curl towards his throat. His face from his nose down to the base of his neck line was covered off in a light-blue-and-smoke-grey camouflage-patterned bandana, and a similar bandana had been used as the cloth backing for his Konoha-issue hitae-ate. Hanging off the right side of his head was the beginning of a porcelain mask, which, contrary to those worn by the village's ANBU ninja unit, bore the image of a terrifying demon, complete with a pair large horns coming from the top of the mask, directly underneath his hitae-ate. The cloak hid a broad, muscular figure, which clearly displayed the level of physical strength for which this man was known.

The shorter of the two figures had a slight swell in the upper torso, barely displaying the fact that the figure was female. The slight swell of her bust was the ONLY hint anyone had concerning her gender, as the entirety of her face was covered by a porcelain mask, similar to the man next to her, only hers was a pure white mask with the village's titular symbol emblazoned on it in an icy shade of blue.

They were Konoha's premiere assassination cell, known to the civilians as Oni and Hyo: The Demon and The Ice.

"Oi," the taller Oni said, "Want to go catch a movie after we make our report? I understand that sequel to your favorite series came out before we were sent out for our mission." Hyo looked at him and canted her head to her left side. Oni looked at her with a confused look.

"Seriously?" Oni asked, palming his face in frustration, "I understand you have trouble keeping guys away with your mask off, but I'm here. Only a real idiot would try to hit on you right now. And don't be afraid to use THAT technique if you want; I don't mind in the least." Hyo raised her head and nodded before sliding her mask off.

It didn't seem to matter how many times Oni saw his partner without her mask, because her face always managed to blow him off his feet. He'd practically raised the girl himself, having picked her up in a back alley in his home town before either had set off on the path of darkness.

The girl's face was set in a beaming smile, and was the spitting image of immaculate beauty. Her dark-chocolate brown eyes always had a deep, soulful quality to them, but always seemed to go unnoticed by the men of the various villages they visited. Her long black hair was separated into a pair of long bangs that reached down to the ends of her shoulders, while the rest flowed out behind her and reached to the middle of her back.

Soon, the girl canted her head to the left again, and the man heard a feminine voice in the back of his head that said, _"Are you serious this time, Zabuza? The last time you told me you'd take me to that movie, you chickened out at the last moment because you didn't want to tarnish your image by being caught watching what you call a "chick flick"."_ Zabuza simply scratched the back of his head. He had no excuse for that.

"I know, Haku, I know…" he said, "But I'm serious this time! Ever since I picked you up in Kiri, you've been at my side, keeping me on track and watching over my every move." At this point, Haku rolled her eyes, expecting another one of Zabuza's attempts at a sappy speech. However, as her eyes returned to face him, she caught a glimpse of a crimson red cloth ruffling behind Zabuza's legs. Her eyes widened for two seconds before returning to normal and fixing on Zabuza's. The taller man now bent down to kneel on one leg, revealing a man with a head of spiky blonde hair and a pair of cerulean blue eyes standing behind him. Haku closed her eyes and prepared for the worst.

"Ever since that blonde brat stepped into our lives, you've continued staying by me, no matter what came our way. Therefore, reputation be damned, I'm going to do this. I owe you that at the LEAST for being there for me over the past years."

With that, Zabuza stood up, sweeping the smaller girl off her feet and resting her in the crook of his massive right arm while holding his equally massive sword along his shoulders. Haku couldn't keep herself from giggling; they looked like the hero and princess from a fantasy role-playing game that involved Warrior Pirates.

"Now if only that little blonde brat weren't so much of a tight-ass when it came to the reports…" Zabuza said, stopping short when he felt a spike of murderous intent from behind. Looking down at Haku with fear in his eyes, he found she'd already slid her mask back over her face.

'_TRAITOR!'_, he mentally screamed. He found himself astounded, not for the first time, when he heard Haku's voice in his head, saying:

"_Sorry, but I'm staying on his good side for now."_

Zabuza slowly turned around and felt a drop of sweat roll down his face. In front of him was his boss, the recently instated Hokage, whom he'd served, along with Haku, for the past fourteen years. The only reason Zabuza, the strongest of ALL of Konoha's Jounin, second ONLY to one Hatake Kakashi, was afraid of the blonde man before him was because Naruto had been only TOO happy to show the taller man what a star could do to a man when it exploded inside his head. That sight had haunted Zabuza's dreams for years afterward, and still snuck in from time to time just to taunt him with its resilience.

"I appreciate your intent to honor a promise to Haku-san, Zabuza-san," Naruto said, his face bent into a frustrated frown and his arms crossed over his torso while his left foot tapped restlessly against the ground, "But would you mind explaining why it is you've decided to stall for even MORE time than you've already used? YOU ARE THREE," Naruto unfolded his arms and reached his right hand up to flick Zabuza's forehead, "DAYS," He flicked the taller man again, "LATE, in case you forgot. Now, please do us ALL a favor and report to the tower to give your mission report and be debriefed for your next job."

"N-NEXT JOB?!" Zabuza shouted, gently depositing Haku on her feet on the ground while rubbing his forehead, "YOU TOLD ME WE'D HAVE THE WEEK OFF AFTER WE GOT BACK! I CAN'T HELP THAT WE RAN INTO A BIT OF A SET-BACK THREE DAYS IN A ROW!" Zabuza reached a muscled arm for Naruto's shoulder and grabbed it, turning him around for an answer.

However, the unearthly, wicked scowl that met his eyes, punctuated with a full combination of the younger man's fox chakra AND his two Sage Modes, resulting in a startlingly horrible appearance, made Zabuza take a few steps back, holding his hands out as if trying to hold back an angry dog.

"NEXT TIME YOU EXPECT TO BANK ON A WEEK OF VACATION AFTER A JOB, YOU SHOULD DO ALL YOU CAN TO MAKE YOUR REPORT **ASAP**, INSTEAD OF STOPPING TO MAKE PLANS AND BAD-MOUTHING YOUR BOSS," Naruto replied, his voice thick with sarcasm and carrying an entirely unimpressed tone. Zabuza took a deep breath out of relief as the blonde man turned and made to walk away.

"And besides that, next time you may want to ensure that the "LITTLE BLONDE BRAT" you happen to be bad-mouthing ISN'T within earshot," Naruto said, keeping up his pace as he made tracks for the Hokage's Tower. Zabuza stopped dead with a pricelessly astounded look on his face. His arms stuck out at his sides with his fingers curled like claws. Haku giggled a little before reaching up to slide her partner's Oni mask over his face. This only served to make her laugh more, as now he looked like an ogre that had been kicked HARD between the legs while plotting acts of extreme evil.

Haku wasted no time in turning on her heels and making her way to the tower, lacking a surprised tone in her voice when her partner caught up and she asked what kept him.

Not long after, the two stood in front of Naruto's desk, masks to their sides. Naruto gave each a hard stare.

"Alright," He said, taking a deep sigh, "Report. How did the mission go?"

Zabuza was about to step up to speak when Haku motioned toward the corners of the room and gave Naruto a worried expression. Naruto nodded and motioned for the ANBU on guard to leave the room, which they did immediately. Haku took a breath.

"Strictly speaking," she said with a voice that was as cold as ice, yet still soft on the ears, "The mission was a success. We cased out the target's lair for three days and moved to take him out on the fourth. However, that's where we ran into the trouble Zabuza mentioned earlier comes into play. The target's family heard about our arrival and tightened security. We had to wait three days for an opening, by which time we had more than enough time to break in and do the deed."

"Yeah, but you managed to conveniently FORGET to mention a certain piece of information before you sent us out, oh fearless leader," Zabuza butted in, "You forgot to mention that the guy had SEVERE heart disease and could die by the slightest motion. Haku barely laid a finger on the chump and he toppled over like a sack of garbage!" Naruto's eyes gained a look of intrigue.

"You're serious?" he said, and, at the nods both assassins gave him, he burst out laughing for five minutes.

"Oh, that was rich. Nice one! I needed a good laugh after all that's happened recently… Now, seriously, how'd you kill the bastard?" He chuckled a little longer, but stopped when the expressions on the two before him solidified into a pair of unimpressed scowls.

"You… You're serious? You barely even touched him and he croaked?" Naruto asked again, and, once again, he received a pair of nods in reply.

"Damn… the old man must have had a heart attack before you got there," Naruto said, "Which would explain why it took so little to drop him." Zabuza thought about it for a moment and nodded his agreement.

Naruto nodded also, reached down into his desk drawer and brought up two small bags of money. He tossed both to Haku, who caught them without even moving.

"Now, as I mentioned before, I have another job for the both of you, one that actually works to allow you to see that movie you were perusing earlier," Naruto said. Zabuza nodded with a bit of a smile.

"We have recently come into possession of a certain prisoner who decided to gate-crash mine and Hina-chan's wedding reception. This prisoner not only kidnapper Hina-chan, but held her hostage in the Forest of Death, but was forced to protect herself when, after I rescued her, Hina-chan and I proved to be too strong."

"Wait," Haku said, a curious look coming over her face, "SHE? This prisoner is a woman? What level of injury did she sustain?" Zabuza rolled his eyes.

"I unleashed a couple powerful attacks on her, which resulted in charred skin on her torso, a few broken ribs, and most of the skin and hair on her head being shaved clean off," Naruto said. Haku's face twisted into a bewildered expression, while Zabuza's right eyebrow ratcheted up a few levels.

"What do you mean… SHAVED off?" he asked. Naruto cocked an eyebrow.

"As in I basically thrust the largest, most destructive version of the Rasen Shuriken, larger than I've ever made before, into her head from above, while she was encased in multiple layers of diamond-thick, solid crystal. I didn't managed to take her entirely out, but she seemed more than sufficiently weakened when she emerged," Naruto said, resting his hands on the desk.

"Now, to return to your new mission specs, you'll be on guard duty in the Konoha Maximum Security Prison. However," Naruto said, "You will NOT be performing this duty alone. You two will be one of a set of three two-man teams used for this mission, the other two being comprised of the gate guards Izumo-san and Koutetsu-san, and the ex-Akatsuki members Itachi Uchiha and Kisame Hoshigaki. Itachi-san and Kisame-san are already on duty, and are an hour into their shift; they will be relieved by Izumo-san and Koutetsu-san, who will be relieved by the two of you. Izumo-san and Koutetsu-san have also volunteered to show you how to access the cell block where our prisoner, Guren, is staying."

"Wait, if she's THAT dangerous," Zabuza asked, "Then why are you leaving now? Shouldn't you stick around until you've gotten answers from her?" Naruto leveled a slight glare at the older man.

"That's really funny, coming as it is, from the man who expected to be given a week off after returning LATE from a mission?" Naruto asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Zabuza felt the sting of the irony in Naruto's words.

"Your mission," The blonde man said, "Will last the entirety of our honeymoon, which, coincidentally, is being extended by a week." Zabuza stared at the blonde boy in outrage; Naruto was not only taking back the week of vacation that Zabuza and Haku had been promised, but also was using it to extended his honeymoon to nearly two months.

"You won't have to worry about her trying to break free while I'm gone," Naruto said, "Hina-chan and I branded her with a chakra-sealing fuinjutsu seal array that covers the majority of her back. I've also applied a second seal to make sure that her clothes can't rub off the array in any way, so the only way this can possibly go wrong is if someone ELSE wipes off even a PORTION of the seal. Now," Naruto snapped his fingers, and, as the aforementioned Chunin entered the room through the window, Haku replaced her mask over her face, "If you'll excuse me, I have to go help Hina-chan finish packing for our trip. Izumo-san, Koutetsu-san, please show Oni and Hyo to the prison, as well as how to get down to the cell our… "Special Guest" is staying in." Zabuza almost felt his blood run cold at the sheer level of venom and hate Naruto used when saying the words "Special Guest".

The two Chunin guards escorted abuza and Haku out of the room while Naruto rose from his desk and opened the door to the secret chambers he shared with Hinata. As soon as the office door swung closed and locked itself tight, so too did the door to the secret chamber.

Roughly a half-hour later, Naruto and Hinata were fully packed. Hinata was smiling calmly to herself, not even bothering to turn and take in the look of discomfort that had spread over Naruto's face; for the stunt he'd pulled the night before, she'd forced him to carry ALL of their luggage down the spiral staircase and load them, ALONE, onto the carriage, and then make sure they were properly secured. She had stressed the final part of his punishment as being THE most important; if even one SOCK was found missing, he would be sleeping alone for the first two weeks. Naruto had paled whiter than a ghost at the threat, but not at the more intimate implications within.

Soon Kakashi came down and got ready to saddle the horses, only to find that not one horse was present.

"Uh…" he mumbled, "Hinata-sama, why are there no horses here?"

Hinata turned to flash Kakashi a mischievous smile.

"Oh, Hatake-san, you silly man… YOU'LL BE PULLING THE CARRIAGE YOURSELF!" she said, a darker undertone in her voice. Kakashi paled at the idea.

'_DAMN YOU, NARUTO! I KNOW THIS IS YOUR DOING!'_ Kakashi thought, cursing his rotten luck. As he reached down to pick up the wooden poles on the ground, he mentally mused that he may have been better off showing up three hours late.

Inside the carriage, having made sure that absolutely EVERYTHING was tied down in extreme degrees, Naruto sat down and rested his head against the headrest, wiping copious amounts of sweat from his brow. He gasped a bit; he was trying to reclaim the oxygen he'd expended performing his task. However, unbeknownst to him, Hinata had made sure to hide one sock in her purse. She intended to punish him for his stunt the night before in any way she could.

He was pleasantly surprised when Hinata rested against him, though he found himself fighting down a bit of annoyance at the same time. After all, after they'd finished packing, HE'D done all the work while she just strolled along with her purse. He was sweating like a shaggy dog in the full swing of summer's heat, and she had barely moved a finger to help him, so why was she sighing and acting as if she was exhausted?

His annoyance dissipated and replaced itself with contentment when he heard her ask, "Naru-kun… Could you continue your story?" Naruto smiled as he watched Kakashi lift the two large poles into the air and start pulling the cart. Naruto nodded, and, with a clearing of his throat, closed his eyes to recall the memories.

_**_  
CHAPTER 8: RETURN OF ICE & SETTING OUT TO NAMI**_

OP: "SOUL DYNAMITE" - ACCESS

_**~ After the initial testing, it was a few weeks of D-ranks, which, having already talked to Jiji-san about it, kinda annoyed me. However, he was the Hokage at the time, so hey, what could I really do?**_

_**I can still remember the look on his face when he realized I'd signed us up for a C-rank… PRICELESS is the only word to describe it. ~ **_

_It had only been a few weeks since Kurenai tested the three genin, and had discovered a bit about her students. For instance, the way Naruto and Hinata seemed able to calm each other down from a major emotional rampage with only a HUG was perplexing in the beginning. However, it had been discovered that the two had known each other before the academy, but hadn't been able to see each other for several years. Due to both children's upbringings being virtually similar, Kurenai hypothesized that it must have been a sort of emotional link that tied them together; what they couldn't have anywhere else, they had plenty of when around each other. _

_Their bond was a way of healing their emotional scars, and filling voids in each other that no one else seemed able. Kurenai could already tell where it would lead the two youngsters and she smiled whenever she thought about it._

_As for Shino… well, aside from his introduction at their testing, Kurenai had discovered… nothing more of interest and decided that she would only broach the subject of his family life if the boy felt like bringing it up._

"_I'm telling you, there aren't any missions for you right now that exceed D-rank. Maybe in a month or so we'll have something for you," Sarutobi said, staring Naruto dead in the eyes with a challenging glare. Naruto wasn't backing down so easily._

_Now the quartet stood prone in the Hokage's office, preparing to receive another mission… if Naruto weren't raising hell over it being YET ANOTHER D-RANK._

"_I'm telling you, there aren't any missions for you right now that exceed D-rank. Maybe in a month or so we'll have something for you," Sarutobi said, staring Naruto dead in the eyes with a challenging glare. Naruto wasn't backing down so easily._

"_Well, I think differently. I know that roster of yours has got at least four missions above D-rank… I CAN SEE IT HANGING ON THE WALL FROM HERE!" Naruto shouted, pointing directly at a spot above the Hokage's head. The elder man jumped to his feet to pull the roster down, only to quickly realize that no such roster was there; the wall was blank. He turned around just in time to see Naruto walking back to his team with a black marker in hand. Looking at his mission roster, the elder man face-palmed when he realized that the young boy had forcefully signed his team up for a C-rank escort mission to Nami no Kuni, a small port town just outside of Kirigakure no Sato, one of the most feared Ninja villages ever known._

_**~ I could tell Sensei had it in for me after that stunt… especially after we got back from Nami… If I thought she was a slave-driver while we were there, I was dead wrong! Jiji-san was right peeved, though. ~**_

"_NARUTO, HOW DARE YOU?!" The elder man shouted._

"_You can't hide behind fear forever, Jiji. There would have come a day when you'd be forced to give us a mission over D-rank in difficulty… why not just get it done now?" the boy said innocently. The elder man simply shook his head._

"_Naruto, you don't understand. I'm not refusing to give you anything over a D-rank mission because I'm afraid… I'm doing it for personal reasons; reasons that would best be discussed in private," The elder man said, looking up at Naruto. Kurenai looked at her student with a combination of fear and amazement._

'_This kid's either got a serious death wish… or he's just plain CRAZY,'__ she thought to herself._

_**~ Jiji-san said they were private reasons… but I already had a feeling they still tied in with my mom's Afterlife Kill List. ~**_

_Sarutobi, seeing no way to get out of this mess, simply looked Naruto and his team in the eyes, and then shouted, "BRING IN THE CLIENT!"_

_Into the room strode a middle-aged man with a small, grey goatee. On his head was a wide-brimmed straw hat with a tall cone on the top, and by simple observation, Naruto could tell this man did hard, physical labor for a living. If his tight-fitting clothes and obvious muscle tone had anything to say, this man was in the construction business. However, the appearance of a bottle in one hand, a red flush on his face, and the ever-strengthening stench of alcohol in the air told Naruto that this man had also been indulging in the bottle recently._

_**~ As soon as that old man showed up, I was sure there would be trouble. He reeked of drink, and no one who's been that heavy into the stuff is able to think properly. ~**_

"_This is Tazuna-san. Tazuna-san, this is Team 10, consisting of-" Sarutobi started. He soon found himself holding back a massive twitch in his left eye when the man burst out laughing._

"_YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING ME!" Tazuna said, "YOU EXPECT ME TO GO ALONG WITH A BLONDE, TWO BLIND KIDS AND A BLACK-HAIRED BIMBO?! WHERE'S YOUR HEAD AT, OLD MAN?" Kurenai was fuming, but noticed anger far greater than her own … and it was coming in spades off of Naruto._

"_I DARE YOU TO REPEAT THAT… YOU LIQUOR-BLISTERED OLD BASTARD!" the boy shouted. The reactions of those around the room varied vastly: Sarutobi's jaw slammed through the floor, Kurenai's eyes exploded from her head, Hinata took a step back with a shocked look on her face… and Shino's left eyebrow ratcheted up a few notches._

'_Wasting no time in bringing out observant verbal insults… all in defense of everyone present? This guy…' Shino thought. Meanwhile, his drunken buzz suddenly vanishing along with his flushed face, Tazuna staggered back a fair distance as a wave of killing intent almost knocked him off his feet. He'd felt that only once before, when a certain corrupt tycoon had sent a particular ninja to try and "convince" him to stop building his bridge. Stunned beyond belief, Tazuna's grip on the bottle weakened. He didn't even flinch when the bottle fell from his grip and struck him on the foot before rolling across the floor._

_**~ I couldn't stand it; he asks for help and then insults us when he sees us? What the hell was I supposed to do? ~**_

"_JUST WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, ASKING FOR A NINJA SQUAD AND THEN SUBSEQUENTLY SHOWING UP DRUNK OUT OF YOUR SKULL, ONLY TO BEGIN INSULTING THOSE YOU'VE BEEN GIVEN? DO YOU EVEN WANT HELP OR NOT?" Naruto shouted. Tazuna backed up again, barely keeping his balance as another wave of killing intent, far more concentrated than the first, tore through him. And was it his imagination… or was the room suddenly getting COLDER in the SUMMERTIME?!_

"_ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT; I TAKE IT ALL BACK, JUST PLEASE DON'T HURT ME! I'M SORRY I INSULTED YOU, PLEASE DON'T HURT ME!" Tazuna shouted in fear, finally collapsing to his knees. Naruto calmed down quickly; almost as quickly as his anger had flared, it receded. Everyone present watched as his eyes slowly curved up into a smile._

"_GOOD! And don't EVER let me hear you insult my team, or my friends, again!" Naruto said confidently. Tazuna stared at the blonde boy, confused out of his mind._

"_I believe Naruto-kun here was deeply hurt and offended by your drunken outburst and lashed out to teach you a lesson, Tazuna-san," Shino said in his drawling monotone, "It would be wise not to attempt that again. If not for your own sake, then for the sakes of the people you'd be leaving behind at home in Nami. I haven't known Naruto-kun long, but I do know this: insult or threaten him, and he'll laugh in your face. Insult or threaten anyone he cares for, and he'll make it his mission to make your life miserable." Tazuna nodded._

_Sarutobi managed to gather his wits about him long enough to say, "If we're all in agreement, Tazuna-san will be escorted to the gate by a small group of ANBU while his escort team prepares for departure. Meet at the South gate of Konohagakure in two hours. That is all." With that, three ANBU appeared from the shadows and escorted Tazuna out of the room while Naruto and his team shot off to prepare. Sarutobi silently shook his head and reached under the desk for a small bottle of sake._

_**~ It didn't take me long to get back to my apartment and pack what I'd need for the trip. I was probably one of the first to show up. ~**_

_An hour later, the five were standing at the Southern Gate of the village, packs ready and filled with equipment. Kurenai nodded and they set off. Naruto had had a feeling earlier that something was slightly off about this whole thing, but for the time being, he let it slide. The five set off on their journey, three bearing beaming smiles. While Naruto and Hinata walked along and chatted happily, Shino simply walked along and conversing with his bugs. Kurenai brought up the rear with Tazuna; instead of striking up conversation, she chose to keep silent and analyze every detail for possible traps. For entirely obvious reasons, however, Kurenai could feel discomfort creeping higher and higher up her spine as the older man's gaze remained fixed on her backside._

'_DEAR KAMI ABOVE….' Kurenai thought with an exasperated sigh, 'why'd Naruto have to get us stuck with a perverted old man? WHY did he have to speak out of place?'_

_**~ I almost jumped the old man several times during that trip. Who'd he think he was, eyeing up Sensei like that, anyway? ~**_

_However, a few hours down the road, the sensation shifted drastically from one of deep discomfort to one of dread and foreboding. Her suspicions were confirmed moments later when, mid-conversation, Hinata stopped and turned to Kurenai. Kurenai saw a look of urgency in the girl's eyes, and at no more than a single glance, stooped down to Hinata's eye level._

"_Sensei, we're about to walk into a genjutsu!" Hinata whispered, sounding scared, "It hasn't rained around the village for weeks, and I just saw a single puddle on the ground a few feet ahead of us!" Kurenai nodded and was about to stand and address the issue when a powerful explosion rocked the ground. The explosion, strangely enough, was coupled with a pair of masculine screams of terror. When Kurenai stood, she saw Naruto holding two kunai in hand, each holding a knotted wad of explosive tags around the hole in the handle._

_**~ I think I had acted more on impulse than anything at that point. I knew something was wrong, so I simply moved to fix the situation. I still don't understand why Sensei got so mad. ~**_

"_NARUTO?! WHAT THE HELL DID YOU JUST DO?" Kurenai demanded. Naruto looked at her with a confused expression on his face._

"_What? The puddle was bothering Hinata, so I dealt with it. The fact alone that…" Naruto stopped as a pair of heavy metal gauntlets fell to the ground in front of him. He reached down to pick them up, then into his bag for a sealing scroll. As he deftly moved his free hand in each gauntlet to clear them of the severed hands within, he found his query and, opening the scroll, simply dropped the two gauntlets into it, and then sealed it again._

"_As I was saying, the fact alone that these two losers were hiding in that puddle makes for a slight boost in our pockets when we return home, right?" Naruto asked, shocking Kurenai stiff._

"_What? You expect me to believe that I didn't need to kill them to be able to get the bounty for them?" Naruto asked. Kurenai stared dumbly at Naruto; Hinata ran over and hugged the blonde boy tightly._

_**~ I wasn't prepared for Shino's reaction at all. Who'd have thought the monotonous drone could muster up that much anger? ~**_

_Despite all this, Shino was by far the most disturbed of the group. Actually, agitated was a better word; the normally stoic boy suddenly rushed up and punched Naruto in the face with a shout of, "MORON! DO YOU REALIZE HOW MUCH OF MY HIVE YOU'VE DESTROYED?! I'M DOWN TO A QUARTER OF MY ORIGINAL NUMBERS BECAUSE OF YOU!" Naruto simply gave him another confused look._

"_I had my bugs scattered around to scout for me. They'd already picked up the disturbance when Hinata-san noticed and informed sensei. I'd flooded that puddle with my bugs… and that explosion KILLED THEM ALL!" Shino said, shouting the last few words. Naruto nodded and bowed low._

"_Sorry, Shino-san, I didn't want to endanger us on a personal level by allowing them free to do as they pleased, so I had to take action. I'll pay you back by taking you to dinner when we get back; anything you like. Is that alright?" Naruto said, sounding sincere._

'_Naruto just KILLED two enemy ninja without ANYONE noticing him move. NEITHER OF THOSE TWO felt him move, neither of them moved to counter-attack until it was far too late… What other surprises is this kid hiding?' Kurenai thought, caught completely off-guard by how almost completely nonchalant Naruto was acting with this. However, after having watched him seal the gauntlets away, her train of thought returned._

_**~ I think Sensei was trying to take command of the situation by that time; too bad she still had to wait for us to make a decision. ~**_

"_This does, however, bring up a sound question," Kurenai said, "If this was a simple escort mission with no more than simple bandits attacking you, I'd see how it'd classify as a simple C-rank. However, I saw those gauntlets, and I know who they belonged to. Why were there missing-nin from Kirigakure here, and WHY ARE THEY AFTER YOU? WHAT ARE YOU NOT TELLING US?" Tazuna jumped a bit, and then lowered his gaze to the ground._

_**~ I'd felt something was off from the moment we left, but had put it off. When Tazuna-san explained, it all made sense. ~**_

"_I… I didn't have enough to afford an A-rank mission, so I… I had to lie about the difficulty. The thing is, I have an economic tycoon after me who wants to hold a monopoly on the economy of Nami. I'm trying to complete a bridge that would open a slew of trade options to our little island nation, but this madman named Gato keeps trying to stop me by sending his thugs to terrorize me. It's put my family in a downward spiral, and the people of the village are dying of poverty…. PLEASE, COME BACK AND HELP ME BEAT HIM! MY PEOPLE NEED THIS BRIDGE TO GET BACK ON THEIR FEET!" Tazuna said, shouting the last bit of his speech. Naruto nodded and pulled Hinata and Shino aside to discuss their next course of action._

_After informing Kurenai as a team that they wanted to complete the mission, the three walked over and stood by their sensei. Naruto, however, seemed to sense something._

_**~ At that point, something was SERIOUSLY wrong. I'd had the feeling since we stopped, but it only got worse as the minutes ticked by. I knew I had to take action. ~**_

"_EVERYONE, DOWN!" he shouted, pulling Hinata and Shino down while Kurenai grabbed Tazuna by the collar and dragged him down. They were JUST in time to avoid being beheaded by a large, sharp object that flew overhead and embedded itself in a tree. As soon as they heard the sound of wood stopping steel, they looked up to see a tall, muscular man standing on the handle of the weapon, wearing a tight muscle shirt and dark pants, while the bottom of his face was obscured by a mass of bandages. A Kirigakure hitae-ate sat around his forehead, but it had a strike through the village symbol._

_**~ The second I saw him, I knew we were in DEEP trouble. ~**_

_Kurenai, the first to look up, said, "ZABUZA MOMOCHI?! RUN EVERYONE, AND DON'T LOOK BACK!"_

_**~ Poor Sensei; if only she hadn't tried to act the hero… not that she got hurt or anything, but still, it didn't help anyone. ~**_

_Just as everyone scrambled to their feet, Naruto felt a shift in the air around them and realized the tall man had performed a rapid movement jutsu that now put him right between the members of the group with a clear shot at Hinata, blade in hand and raised over his head._

"_SORRY, LITTLE GIRL; BLAME KAMI FOR BEING IGNORANT ENOUGH TO GET YOU SENT TO YOUR EARLY DEATH," Zabuza said, swinging his blade downward._

_**~ My mind ground to a halt on a single thought: "SAVE HINATA-CHAN". I couldn't think of anything else at the time if I tried, and I didn't. But it was weird when everything around me started slowing down with me. ~**_

_As Hinata's scream of fear tore the air around them, things seemed to slow down for Naruto. He didn't understand why, but he could suddenly see in slow motion. Not only that, but he saw a path of dots in a zigzagging path along the blade of Zabuza's blade, with one blinking point just at the center of the blade where it would connect with Hinata's head._

_**~ I didn't understand it that much at the time, but I just felt I should go with the flow, so to speak. ~**_

_Without a second's hesitation, Naruto jumped into the blade's path and held up two fingers on his left hand. To his astonishment, a small, brilliant sparkle of light shot from the sky and landed in between his index and middle fingers, silently expanding into a circular guard while a second sparkle shot from the sky and landed between the same fingers of his other hand, which he held by his side._

_As soon as the two sparkles landed in place, time resumed, and Zabuza soon found his blade stopped by the small boy… with only TWO FINGERS!_

_**~ That was too much… I didn't realize I had THAT much power! A technique that couldn't pass as anything more than a C-rank jutsu stopped that massive blade cold! ~ **_

"_Zabuza-san… was it?" Naruto asked, "You may want to stop underestimating others just because you believe you can't be beaten. What, did you think a woman, an old man, and three kids were no match for you?" he waited for Zabuza to answer, and, lowering his gaze to the ground, continued when he got no response._

"_As it is, this particular genin just came into possession of a few powerful moves…" Naruto raised his gaze to display a twisted smile, which, coupled with the sudden appearance of his Hoshigan, served to totally unnerve Zabuza, "That will ensure you DON'T win this battle." _

_**~ For as cool as I was acting, I didn't know if what I was about to do next would even work. ~**_

_With that, Naruto's right hand shot up at an angle, sending the small sparkle between his fingers rocketing on a crash course with the sharp edge of the sword. To both his and Zabuza's surprise, the small sparkle chopped straight through the blade, rebounding back on an opposite angle several times until it hit the top and … VANISHED. As for the sword, the blade soon split into a series of ten pieces, all of which fell from the hilt and hit the ground._

_**~ Once again, shock was the only thing I could feel. I'd destroyed his weapon with one move! But I had to keep my cool. ~**_

"_WHAT THE HELL?!" Zabuza shouted, jumping back a few steps as Naruto stepped forward with that creepy smile still showing as he solemnly intoned:_

"_You just stepped up against something you can't beat, Zabuza-san… And you probably won't leave here alive." ~_

* * *

Naruto smiled as he stopped his story; during his reminiscence, Kakashi had managed to get them all the way to their destination… NAMI NO KUNI.

"It's been forever! I can see they've definitely improved!" Naruto said as Kakashi rested the poles in front of the doorway of a large, fancy hotel.

"Alright," Kakashi said between gasps for air, "You two… enjoy yourselves… Don't take any …. unnecessary risks… and come back in one piece, alright?" Kakashi turned to leave and promptly passed out. Naruto chuckled.

"So much for the GREAT Hatake Kakashi… he's losing his edge, huh?" he asked as he started untying the bags. Hinata giggled a bit.

"Did he ever really HAVE an edge?" she asked, drawing another chuckle from Naruto, who quickly pulled out a sealing scroll and sealed the bags, including Hinata's purse, inside.

The two linked arms as they stepped into the hotel to get registered.

~ THE END… FOR NOW… ~

Hope you liked it! ^_^

Just to let everyone know, I most likely will NOT be able to update next week, as there are plans in motion with my family that involves home improvement. Time will be short to work on chapters, so I'll do the best I can. I can't make any guarantees, but I'm certainly NOT letting this one go. ^_^ I simply ask that you maintain patience. ^_^


	9. CINEMATIC FLOP & TINY RIPPLES

[A/N]Here comes Chapter 9. Once again, if you're going to review, PLEASE make an account so I can properly reply to you. They're free to make, last I checked, so you don't have to pay for anything. ^_^ [A/N]

_**~~~ KONOHAGAKURE MOVIE THATER: SANJI'S CINEMA ~~~**_

"I CAN'T BELIEVE THEY DESTROYED MY FAVORITE SERIES!"

Zabuza recoiled from the loud exclamation in surprise more than a pain in his ears. It was officially the first time in years that Haku had spoken verbally in public without her mask on.

True to his word, Zabuza had gone with Haku to the theater to watch what they had THOUGHT was going to be an interesting girl's movie. What had followed was something more akin to Zabuza's tastes. Instead of a tasteless romantic comedy full of stereotypes, clichés, and blonde jokes, the movie had quickly devolved into a brutal slasher story where the heroine of the story wound up spending the rest of her life in a padded cell due to insanity.

Insanity, you ask?

Well, considering the man she was SUPPOSED to be romantically engaged with turned out to be the murderer in disguise, she spent most of the movie running from supposedly the "love of her life". By the end of the movie, she'd been so traumatized from having to kill the murderer under those pretenses that she lost her mind and had to be institutionalized.

Haku had stormed out of the theater after the first four murders, having given up hope that the story would pick up. Zabuza, unsurprisingly, had stayed to finish the movie, and had been on the edge of his seat, actively rooting for the killer the entire time… and in a rather loud voice, at some points.

Now, as they walked out of the theater, Haku was ranting and raging in her own little world, completely oblivious to the throngs of civilians and shinobi that were stepping back and making a path for her. Zabuza shook his head; he'd seen haku angry, depressed, overjoyed, and close to losing her mind on several occasions, and, on one particular occasion, ALL FOUR in a long, looping sequence. By all accounts, this was the absolute ANGRIEST he'd EVER seen her.

'_Who knew,'_ Zabuza thought, _'That all you had to do to make her go ballistic was forever ruin a series she was in love with?'_

He made sure to file that away in the back half of his mind, where he was certain Haku couldn't reach with her "Mind Speaking" techniques. He'd learned ages ago that the ONE thing no one should ever do was insult her for reading her books… or, least of all, insult the books themselves.

Haku had made her way out of the theater and far down the street before Zabuza had cleared the exit, but as he turned to try and catch sight of her, he caught sight of the three movie posters on the wall. On the far left was a poster for an action movie starring a big-ticket actor known for his stunts, while in the middle was the poster for the movie they'd just watched, called "Ai Surassha -The Love Slasher-". The final poster was what sent Zabuza into a fit of loud, hysterical laughter that would have had the citizens of Kumogakure reeling in fear.

The last poster was for the movie Haku had WANTED to see: "Bara no Barentain: Saigo no Kaido -Valentine Rose: The Last Meeting-", the big-screen adaption of her favorite romance series.

Zabuza couldn't help but laugh at the predicament his partner had placed herself in; in her enthusiasm, she'd jabbed her finger toward the poster asking for two tickets, but the girl working the box office had misread the direction. Zabuza reached for his pants pocket and pulled out the ticket stub, and laughed harder when he saw the title for the slasher flick on the stub.

By this point, Haku had heard his laughter and turned back around to assail him for finding it to be a good movie, or even FUNNY. However, JUST as she grabbed his collar and reared back to sock him in the face, he raised his right hand, showing his ticket stub. He then raised his left hand to point toward the movie posters on the wall. Haku read the title on the stub, then looked up at the wall and gasped.

Zabuza felt his back hit the ground hard when Haku released his collar and broke down in hysterical laughter beside him. During the few short minutes the two were rolling around laughing, the civilians on the street had filed away, returning in haste to their homes where they were SURE to be safe from the psychotic duo… and hoping against hope that their "crazy" wouldn't spread through closed doors.

Within minutes the two managed to pull themselves together, remembering that, above all, they were professional shinobi who were supposed to be unable to laugh at ANYTHING after all the years they'd spent killing people. This thought, shared between the two verbally through chokes and gasps of breath caused both to break down laughing again. They spent another five minutes rolling around in hysterical laughter… which caused even the poor girl in the ticket booth to run into the theater and seek shelter.

They finally had to stop laughing as their ribs began to ache from lack of oxygen. As they slowly stood, holding their sides with matching expressions of pain, Zabuza looked at Haku and cleared his throat.

"Seeing as we got the wrong movie," he said, smiling when Haku burst into a fit of giggles, "Do you want to watch YOUR movie this time? And no," Haku's eyes widened in surprise; "I'm NOT joking around or jerking your chain. I MEAN it." Haku jumped up and latched her arms around his broad shoulders with glee.

Standing once more with Haku in his arms, Zabuza walked over to the empty box office, left enough ryo for two tickets and took the tickets for their movie, which was set to start in three minutes. They rushed in, left a bit more money for concessions at the counter and made their way to their theater. Unsurprisingly, they were the only ones in the theater. They leisurely took their seats and sat back as the film, which had been left on automatic feed when the civilian running the booth had fled, began to play.

After about half an hour, Zabuza had to admit that the story was engaging… even if he was technically only watching the last of three movies. The film had everything: action (ninjas killing assassins off screen), mystery (the heroine's love interest seemed to vanish into thin air during the first half of the movie), and a romantic plot that, while corny to the core, still had Zabuza wiping tears from his eyes by the time the movie ended.

Outwardly, Zabuza enjoyed the movie. Inwardly, though, he was celebrating the fact that he'd be able to preserve his reputation. Moreover, deep down, he was certain that Haku could sense his relief.

This time, as they walked from the theater doors, Haku let the taller man get a bit ahead of her before taking a short, running leap. Zabuza felt his knees strain at the sudden appearance of Haku on his back, and his brain forced him to regain his bearings before he lost his balance. However, what he wasn't ready for was Haku's next actions.

In one motion, Haku climbed up Zabuza's muscular back and sat atop his shoulders, acting like a young child at a fair with her father.

"Thank you, Zabuza."

The burly man had heard those words hundreds of times over the years they'd been together, but they'd never sounded as full of emotion and gratitude before. The fact that Haku was resting her face in his hair, combined with the fact that he could feel his scalp getting wet, even with a lack of rain, made him understand just how happy she was. He smiled behind his mask, reached up and ruffled her hair a little bit.

"Hey," he said, his voice low and soft, "Why don't we go back and clock in early for our shift on guard duty? You can educate me on that movie and the series it came from while we watch the prisoner."

He felt her squirm a little until she was resting in his arms, bridal style. She smiled at him happily.

"Sounds like a plan… PARTNER."

_**~~~ MEANWHILE, IN NAMI NO KUNI ~~~**_

Naruto sat on a plush couch, his back against the arm rest while his legs dangled off the other side. He smiled and groaned a bit as the weight on his body shifted, and his thoughts were jostled back to the presence of his new wife on his chest.

It had been less than ten hours since they arrived at the hotel and signed in, and, much like in the carriage, Naruto got the feeling Hinata was not only testing him, but also mocking him while doing so. He had been forced to haul their luggage - ALL TWENTY BAGS WORTH OF IT - down to the carriage, properly secure it, and then unload it all the same way when they arrived at the hotel, WITHOUT using seals or enhanced strength. It had been too much on his muscles the first time, and he'd caved, sealing all of their belongings into a sealing scroll upon their arrival. However, in doing so, he'd found something that had tipped him off to his wife's plans.

Now, after having gone for dinner to celebrate their marriage, they'd returned and promptly settled on the couch. Naruto had happily taken the plush under his back, content to watch Hinata sleep peacefully on his chest. He found it cute, but also quite strange; even though she'd done most of the work packing, she'd done very little of the loading and unloading of the carriage, only to unload half of what they needed to where they'd need it. The initial packing had taken roughly half an hour, considering Hinata had dealt with half of it herself while he'd gone out to look for Zabuza and Haku, who had been a day late in returning to the village. The trip had taken them about six hours by carriage, which, fortunately for them, had been pulled there in haste by Hatake Kakashi.

However, unfortunately for Kakashi, he'd used an insane amount of chakra to accomplish the deed, and had passed out as soon as they'd arrived. Their half unpacking had taken another half hour, as they had to work together to find where everything needed to go, and then dinner had been a two hour event where Hinata, in a rare showing of impatience, had almost levels three waiters when they'd failed to bring drinks, appetizers, and dessert in a timely manner. It had taken Naruto gently sending a numbing chakra flare into her body to calm her down. Unfortunately, these flares also had the unforeseen side effect of causing massive bursts of pleasure in the girl's body, sending her into powerful orgasms with each one. Naruto had begun to suspect she was doing it on purpose.

Upon arriving back at the hotel, Naruto had intended to ask what was wrong, but Hinata had immediately stormed into the bathroom and locked the door. When he saw a small stain of red on the brown carpet, Naruto knew what was happening. Therefore, when Hinata stepped out after an hour, she almost burst into tears.

Naruto had arranged the couch in a way that would let them watch a movie; the choice of which one to watch was left up to her. On the small coffee table were multiple bars of chocolate the size of a door, as well as several large tubs of ice cream in varying flavors. In addition, when Naruto turned around, he was holding THREE of the largest stuffed bears she'd ever laid eyes on. She ran over and tackled him to the floor, hugging him the whole way down.

They settled on a repeat of a sequel to one of Hinata's favorite movies, which was actually part of a series, which had the final part in theaters at the time. Naruto had never seen the movie before, so it was up to Hinata to educate him as the movie progressed. By the end of the movie, Hinata had fallen asleep; her light breathing the only sound in the room as Naruto slowly and quietly turned off the video player and let his mind wander. He kept one hand against her head, gently stroking her hair while his thoughts drifted all over the place.

So when she shifted and stirred awake, he simply smiled at her and said, "Welcome back to the world of the living, Hina-chan. How'd you sleep?" She gave him a sarcastic look and moved to get up, but found herself unable to as Naruto's free arm wrapped up to rest gently on her back and hold her in place.

"I slept well enough, I guess," she said curtly, moving a little more. With Naruto preventing her from leaving, she figured she might as well get comfortable again.

"That's good, considering you passed out before the movie ended," he said with a small smirk. She looked him in the eyes, giving him a look that was half scandalized… and yet, half uncaring in the least.

"Really, I did?" she said, the sarcasm oozing in her voice. Naruto chuckled.

"You're not going to let me go anytime soon, are you?" she asked, moving a little to get free, but to no avail. Naruto shook his head.

"Well, in that case," she said, "Why don't we continue from where you left off in the carriage?" Naruto smiled.

"I thought you'd never ask," he said, closing his eyes as he watched hers drift shut. Soon, he was drifting back in time, the memory floating to the front of his mind.

_**_  
CHAPTER 9: CINEMATIC FLOP & TINY RIPPLES  
**_

OP: "RE:MEMBER" - FLOW

_**~ At the time, I found myself amazed. The technique that I'd just used had barely used up any chakra at all! However, I could sense something more was coming, so I prepared for the inevitable. ~ **_

"_You just stepped up against something you can't beat, Zabuza-san… And you probably won't leave here alive."_

_Zabuza backed off another step as the ominous words left the twelve-year-old boy's mouth. He'd heard those words, or words like them, many times before, but never had he felt FEAR hearing them._

_After all, not one person who'd threatened him that way in the past had had the power or guts to back up their words. This little punk had not only THREATENED him, but destroyed his blade too! The Kubikiribocho's blade was on the ground in ten pieces, and it would take the blood of at LEAST three hundred men to repair it!_

_Zabuza stared the boy down coldly while frantically formulating a plan of action. Meanwhile, in a tree several yards away, a smaller figure sat crouched on a branch, waiting for the right time to strike. Unfortunately, the figure moved around too much and rustled the branches._

_**~ I couldn't believe it! Tree branches were shaking when there was no breeze. Either that was a bad attempt at genjutsu, or the person in the tree hadn't realized the fumble they'd just made. ~**_

_On the ground, Zabuza's eyes homed in on Naruto, who stood stock still, analyzing his chances of beating the larger man. Meanwhile, Kurenai had gotten up once more, taking a protective stance in front of Tazuna along with Hinata and Shino, both of whom had gotten in close._

_The man glared at the boy, trying his hardest to size him up._

_Finally, realizing there was no way his weapon wouldn't be useful to him now, tossed the hilt into the air, where it was swiped away by a blur of white and blue that no one except Naruto caught. With one more step back, Zabuza ground his heel into the ground before launching himself at Naruto. Naruto raised his forearms in a cross-block and barely blocked the brutal punch Zabuza threw. The taller man followed this up with a leg sweep, but Naruto jumped high, clamping his legs around the back of Zabuza's neck and burying the man's face in his chest. Naruto rained down mocking, yet furious bows upon the man's head while simultaneously dodging Zabuza's attempts to knock him from his perch._

_Zabuza couldn't believe it; this little brat was sitting on his shoulders, beating his head in with weak, repeated… CHILD-LIKE ATTACKS! Aside from a mild migraine, the attacks wouldn't be enough to do any major damage, so Zabuza just stood still, weaving in place like a drunk while swatting at the boy to knock him from his perch._

_**~ I knew I had to do SOMETHING… I just didn't think it would be so funny to think about now! ~**_

_With one final, especially frustrated swing, Zabuza struck at Naruto, finally tagging him in the side. Naruto winced and gave Zabuza one more strike to the head before leaping off his opponent's head, delivering a solid kick to the older man's jaw in the act._

_**~ One little clip wasn't going to keep him down; I knew that. He wasn't in the bingo book for nothing, after all. ~**_

_Zabuza gave the boy a glare that rivaled Naruto's own. Naruto simply returned fire with one of his own. Zabuza didn't move for several seconds, and then…_

"_SUITON: KIRIGAKURE NO JUTSU!"_

_With that, Naruto found himself lost in a sea of thick mist. After several moments of swatting at nothing, Naruto was about ready to give up and wait. However, Zabuza wasn't finished yet._

"_SUITON: SUIRO NO JUTSU!"_

_Zabuza shot forward, touching Naruto's forehead. As Naruto lost his footing from the contact, he found himself being wreathed in a sphere of water. Naruto struggled against the water, but to no avail._

_**~ I didn't know what to do… until things seemed to slow down again. ~**_

_Once more, time seemed to slow down. Naruto looked around and saw a ring around him. When he reached his hand to it, he felt a rush of chakra to his hand, and immediately knew what had to be done. He closed his eyes and focused, building the chakra in his arm. Unbeknownst to him, something was happening in his eyes…_

_**~ I remember feeling a burst of discomfort in my eyes, and then… I felt like I had to cry. ~**_

"_SUITON: SASHIKI MYAKU!"_

_Zabuza watched as small, saw-like blades erupted from the swell of his water prison and cut around thrice. With a wet "pop", the prison burst open, depositing Naruto on the ground with no injuries and extremely soaked clothes._

"_WHAT THE-?" Zabuza shouted, jumping back a fair distance to put some space between him and the "weird brat"._

_**~ I hadn't expected that move to work, but I'm glad it did. ~**_

_**- I am too… we wouldn't be here right now if that hadn't worked. -**_

_**~ Well, I'm not sure about that assessment… but I know what you mean. I'm happy that one move worked the way it was supposed to. ~**_

'What the hell,'_ Zabuza thought, _'I have no weapon, taijutsu is pointless, and ninjutsu doesn't do ANYTHING to this kid! What the hell else do I have?"

_Naruto stared the larger man down while gasping for air. That last move had taken a bit out of him physically, and he needed a few minutes to recover._

_At this point, Zabuza stood up and walked over, picked up Naruto by the collar, and then dragged him out behind a set of trees._

_**~ I was away at that point, so I don't know what was going on… ~**_

_**- I'll fill in the blanks for you, Naru-kun. -**_

"_NARUTO-KUN!" Hinata shouted, frightened and worried. She started after them, but stopped cold when Kurenai held a hand out to stop her._

"_I don't know what's going on, Hinata-san, but you can't go in there. If, and I mean IF we've lost Naruto, we can't afford to lose you too. Do you understand?" Kurenai asked. Kurenai looked down with tears in her eyes and saw Hinata had collapsed to the ground, sobbing her heart out. Soon, both females were on their knees, holding each other tight as they mourned the potential passing of their blonde team mate._

_Tazuna gave a look of confusion._

_Shino, seeing this, said, "Tazuna-san, I may not be in a position to speak, being how I am, but I believe they fear the worst. We may have lost our strongest team mate just now… Mourning is an entirely logical response… especially since, for Hinata-san, it was more of an emotional loss. She and Naruto-san share a bond of loneliness. I'm sure if you give them enough time, they'll explain everything calmly. For now, just… just leave them be." Tazuna nodded._

_**~ Wait, you mean to tell me Sensei thought I was dead? ~**_

_**- . . . Yeah, she expected the worst, and I joined her. -**_

_From behind the trees came a thick, rolling cloud of mist. Outside, Shino stared into the mist, trying to discern what was taking place._

"_Wait a minute," Shino said, lowering his gaze in thought, "A brutal man like Momochi Zabuza wouldn't drag a boy behind the trees and use the Kirigakure no Jutsu to kill him…" _

_Shino's head snapped up, and he yelled, "HINATA-SAN! THERE'S A GOOD CHANCE HE'S STILL ALIVE! USE YOUR BYAKUGAN!"_

_Hinata's head jerked up, a hopeful smile plastered across her face as she turned her gaze towards the trees._

_With a cry of "BYAKUGAN!", the veins around Hinata's eyes pulsed and became visible. She looked through the mire of mist._

"_THERE!" She shouted, pointing to a spot between two of the taller trees, "HE'S ALIVE! And… they're still fighting!"_

_**- It never surprised me how all we had to do was to leave it to Shino-kun to be the voice of reason. -**_

_**~ I know what you mean… Bug Boy is just TOO logical. However, that's neither here nor there. I believe we were about to get back to my portion of the story, right? ~**_

_In the mist, Zabuza and Naruto had resumed their battle, resorting to a simple trading of blows. As each thrust out their fists and feet in an attempt to hit the other, Naruto, despite being younger and less experienced, was quickly gaining ground against the older, more experienced Zabuza._

_Zabuza found his tactics and abilities quickly failing him as, strike after strike, the younger boy continued to gain an advantage over him. He couldn't count the number of times the boy had slipped under his guard and hit him with a strike to the elbows and knees, and he knew he'd been hit in the kidney several times. The worst he got from those attacks were minor discomfort, but the constant attacks were wearing on his ability to persevere._

_**~ I had him licked, but I felt like being merciful. I probably shouldn't have, but I really DIDN'T want to kill anyone yet. ~**_

_Finally, with one more swing of his arms, Zabuza fell to his knees as Naruto used his arms as horizontal bars to swing up and land a pair of brain-dusting kicks to his chin. Naruto flipped in midair and landed in a kneeling position several feet away. However, there was no longer any aggression in his posture._

_Zabuza, noticing that Naruto's body language had changed, shouted, "WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR, YOU LITTLE BRAT? FINISH ME OFF! YOU'VE GOT ME SERVED UP ON A PLATTER, SO TAKE THE KILL STROKE, DAMN YOU!"_

_**~ I couldn't understand his mindset, and something told me it was better I didn't. SO, I did the only thing I knew how to: I tried to help him. ~**_

_Naruto simply shook his head and walked over. He offered Zabuza his hand to help him up, but offered him a few words of warning:_

"_I MEAN YOU NO FURTHER HARM. HOWEVER, SHOULD YOU TRY TO ATTACK ME WHILE I TRY TO HELP YOU OUT, I WILL NOT HESITATE TO PUT YOU RIGHT BACK DOWN AGAIN. From there, we'll keep repeating the process until you either understand my intentions, or are unable to move more than a few inches. Am I understood?"_

_**~ I had seriously hoped at that point that following up on my threat wouldn't have to happen. I count myself extremely lucky that I didn't have to in the end. ~**_

_Zabuza's eyes widened at the sound of Naruto's voice; the boy's tone was strong, but his words carried hints of sadness… and he wasn't lying. After the beating Zabuza had just taken, he was only TOO certain that this kid could, and very well WOULD, put him right back into the ground without any trouble._

_Therefore, against his better judgment, Zabuza took Naruto's hand and stood slowly. Naruto smiled, but sensed something was coming. Moving fast, Naruto jumped in the way of three thin needles that had been fired from one of the trees, catching them between two fingers._

_**~ Needless to say, I wasn't too happy. I think Zabuza picked up on that quickly. ~**_

"_HAKU, STOP! EXTRACTION PLAN IS VOID FOR NOW!" the taller man shouted. A rush of air blew through the area, prompting the arrival of a third body._

"_Are you certain, Zabuza-sama? We could easily take him out together!" the figure, identified as Haku, said. Naruto could have sworn he heard a hint of depression and disappointment in Haku's voice._

_**~ She sounded like the idea of killing me was against her way of life… It was strange, but I almost saw a bit of myself in her. ~**_

_Naruto looked the new figure up and down several times, even though a quick cursory glance was all it took to tell him he was in the presence of a girl. Haku's clothing worked wonders for hiding her gender, but it wasn't the thought of what might be under them that caught his eye. She had a needle between each finger, holding them like claws, but one hand was poised by her stomach, as if something was desperately wrong. He couldn't have been more right._

_Haku silently thanked every god she knew of that her mask was capable of hiding her face at that moment. Having been perched in a tree at the time Zabuza and his much more diminutive foe had been fighting, Haku had suddenly felt a rush inside her… that had escalated to something she'd only ever felt in Zabuza's presence._

_**~ She was fidgeting… I didn't know what it meant, but I didn't want to try and find out. ~ **_

_Naruto looked at the masked girl, who did nothing but stare back at him._

"_Alright, Zabuza-san, I'm letting you go," Naruto said, turning to go back to his team. Zabuza started._

"_What do you mean, you're 'LETTING ME GO'? Zabuza demanded. Naruto turned back, a serious look on his face._

"_What I mean is this: I WON'T FIGHT YOU ANY MORE. I just recently awakened my eyes to their second level. As I understand it, I need a few days of tough training to be able to acclimate to them and reach the next level. If you still feel like fighting… How about we make a wager?" Naruto said. Zabuza's eyebrow moved up two notches._

"_What kind of wager?" Zabuza asked. He sounded calm and level-headed, but his voice carried hints of curiosity. Naruto smiled._

_**~ I couldn't resist messing with him a little. ~**_

"_How about this: I need three days to train, so we'll have a rematch in about one week, on the bridge that the bridge-builder we're escorting is building," Naruto said, a mischievous smirk gracing his lips, "One battle, first to draw blood three times with ANY attack wins. I phrase it that way because I seriously do NOT want to kill anyone. I don't think I'm ready for that yet. The only thing we'd have to do is keep my team from interfering."_

_Haku took a step forward and said, "I can help in that respect. My Kekkei Genkai allows me to control ice, and my strongest jutsu allows me to creative more than a dozen mirrors of ultra-reflective, indestructible ice mirrors that can turn any genjutsu used within their confines back on the user and anyone with them. It shouldn't be too hard to keep them trapped." Naruto nodded._

"_I trust you have a way of keeping yourself out of harm's way while using this technique?" Naruto asked. Haku nodded._

"_I can meld into the mirrors and transport from one to another at speeds so fast that only a highly-trained Sharingan would be able to track me," she answered. Naruto nodded._

"_Well, that's all well and good, but you're still forgetting something," Zabuza said, and, drawing a confused look from Naruto, said, "First off, you haven't introduced yourself, even though you know who we are. Second, we haven't set down the stakes for this wager. What's in it if I win?"_

_**~ I knew he would bring that up. ~**_

"_Alright," Naruto said, "how about this: You win, you get to finish me off in front of my team. You can even keep my head for a trophy if you want. However, if I win, you come back to Konoha with us, and convert to our village. I'll enlist both of you as temporary aides to my family and you'll be under my protection until I can find a way to release you as normal civilians."_

_Zabuza nodded, before his eyes popped open and he asked, "Wait… What does that mean, "under the protection of your family"? Who are you?"_

_Naruto held up a hand. Zabuza watched as the stars in Naruto's eyes turned from gold to a shining sky blue. A pulse of chakra shot from Naruto's hand, dissipating the mist._

"_My name… is Namikaze. NARUTO NAMIKAZE."_

Naruto took a deep breath and smiled. Hinata had fallen asleep on him again, but this time, she'd managed to hold out until he'd finished his story to pass out.

'At least I know I'm not a TOTAL bore,' he whispered to himself, smiling happily, as he moved his hand from Hinata's back to rest on her head. Long after Naruto had fallen asleep, his hand remained on her head, slowly, lovingly, stroking her hair.

~ THE END… FOR NOW… ~

Hope you liked it! ^_^ BTW, the movie titles are made up; there are no such movies in existence… at least I hope there aren't… ^^;

For those wondering, the various technique names are thus:

Suiton: Kirigakure no Jutsu: The famous "Hiding in Mist" technique, or to the VIZ people, "Hidden Mist" technique. Fairly simple.

Suiton: Suiro no Jutsu: the Water Prison technique. Again, it's self-explanatory.

Suiton: Sashiki Myaku=Water Release: Cutting Pulse: An extension of Naruto's powers. By "tuning" his Hoshigan to his opponent's technique and its affinity, Naruto is able to unleash a pulse or beam of chakra as an attack. At Level 1, Naruto is only able to use weaker, more basic attacks. However, at Level 2, he's able to use slightly stronger ones. The Sashiki Myaku is, as its name implies, a simple, cutting pulse of water-style chakra used to disrupt the flow of chakra to any water-type technique. In this case, Naruto uses the technique to release himself from Zabuza's Suiro no Jutsu.

I have no definite name for the Fuuton jutsu Naruto used there, but if anyone would like to send in a suggestion VIA PM, I'd be more than happy to see what you come up with. ^_^ TEK OUT!


	10. THE SPICE OF LIFE & EBB AND FLOW

[A/N]Here comes Chapter 10. I owe my friend Ace6151 a lot for helping with brainstorming for this chapter. He has TONS of ideas for new stories, and they're all up for adoption:  
( forum/Original-Characters /118194/)  
( forum/Plot-Bunnies /118331/)  
( forum/Original-Powers-and-Abilities /118859/)

Make sure to pay his pages a visit if you're interested! ^_^ Now, because you've been waiting for so long for this, let's get on with our standard fare. Once again, if you're going to review, PLEASE make an account so I can properly reply to you. They're free to make, last I checked, so you don't have to pay for anything. ^_^ [A/N]

__ _**KONOHAGAKURE TOP-PRIORITY PRISON, MAXIMUM SECUIRTY ZONE FLOOR THREE ~~~**_

Guren sat on her cot, watching her two guards. During the past sixteen hours, she'd gotten to know her other four guards rather well. The first two had been only too happy to talk to a pretty woman, while the next two had been only too happy to intimidate her into total silence. These two, however, didn't seem to care any less. Their indifference was best demonstrated with how they both sat with their backs to the bars, talking in hushed tones about a specific series of book the girl of the two seemed to like.

Thinking back, Guren cursed herself for not having figured they'd try to mess with her head.

The first two guards, Kamizuki Izumo and Hagane Kotetsu, had seemed like stern, duty-driven soldiers. However, the first time Guren had to go to the showers, both men had been only too pleased to poke their head around the corner and watch her. She'd decided to tease them with enough of a show to make them pass out, but had taken too long to do so. Just as the two guards hit the floor with massive nose bleeds, her next guards had stepped in. Well, to be more honest, one had stepped in; the other had _APPEARED_ through the shower floor and plastered her to the wall with an advanced Suiton Jutsu that seemed to act as a sort of adhesive.

After grabbing the two guards and forcing them to leave, the two had locked Guren back in her cell, half naked, before blandly introducing themselves as Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigaki Kisame, ex-missing-Nin from Konoha and Kirigakure, respectively. She knew that Itachi had killed his entire family minus his little brother, and that Kisame was a rogue after purposefully defecting due to unknown reasons… so what were two exceedingly dangerous men doing here as GUARDS?

She had asked them this question and gotten nothing more than a predatory glare from Kisame, along with the question, "Hey Itachi-san, are you sure that punk-assed little brat said we can't rough her up a little and make her quiet down? I'm getting tired of hearing her voice, and it hasn't even been ten minutes yet."

Itachi, having been resting his back against the bars, had simply turned to face her… and hit her with a dose of his specialty Tsukiyomi genjutsu. The resulting burst of pain and suffering tore through her at an accelerated pace, leaving her huddled in the fetal position in the far corner of her cell, whimpering like a frightened child.

With a half-interested query of, "Is that quiet enough for you?" He had sat back with his back to the bars, soon joined by Kisame. Both men had promptly passed out, neither needing to watch the woman while she rocked herself to sleep in the corner.

Hours later, the trio had been interrupted when the last of the six guards came down to relieve their fellows. Itachi had quickly stirred Kisame and both were out of the building before anyone could say a word.

Thus, Guren had been informally introduced to Oni and Hyo. Guren flinched and backed into the corner once again, knowing full well that should she act up in any way, these two could and WOULD filet her alive.

So, with that knowledge, Guren had gotten up only twice to use the facilities and once to eat in the five hours Oni and Hyo had been there. In that time, she'd moved from the floor to the cot and back several times, while also trying to get an accurate handle on the conversation her guards were engaged in.

Although, with the way Hyo was moving her head silently and Oni was talking, it seemed like Oni was talking to a brick wall instead of his partner. After several nearly unsuccessful attempts at creeping up on the bars, she finally managed to sneak a peek at a series of book in Hyo's hand. Once she had snuck back to her bed, she laid down on her side to contemplate what she'd seen.

'_Valentine Rose?'_ Guren thought frantically, scared out of her wits once more, _'why on earth would a brute like Oni be talking about a cheesy romance series like that?'_ The possibilities and hidden depths of this revelation spun circles around Guren's mind as she tried to figure out what they were plotting.

Were they going to torture her by planting her by the wrists into the ceiling with roses made of ice?

Would Oni simply stare her into total submission and interrogate her?

Or would things take a much… DARKER turn?

Guren shivered to think of that possibility. So wrapped up in her thoughts was she that she didn't hear the cell door creak open, nor when the person who entered her cell draped a thick blanket over her, fearing she might be getting cold. Guren only realized something had happened when she heard her cell door close.

Wait… the door closed?

Moreover, for that matter… when did it open in the first place?

Once more, Guren found her mind reeling and spinning, with no definite end to her mental struggles in sight. Zabuza and Haku simply shrugged their shoulders at the sight of their prisoner and went back to discussing the books.

_**~~~ MEANWHILE, IN NAMI NO KUNI~~~**_

Naruto awoke to a disturbing feeling. Namely, his newfound worry was caused by inexplicable lack of Hinata's weight and presence on top of him. Naruto shot out of the couch, his eyes darting left and right in utter panic as his senses went on red alert. His Hoshigan activated to Level 4, scanning everything in sight for any trace of his wife:

On the table was a half-eaten plate of pancakes and bacon.

On the stove sat a pan covered in grease, which someone had used to cook both the pancakes AND the bacon, in that order. His senses relaxed a tiny bit.

On the counter was a foil-wrapped plate. His senses relaxed a bit more.

A light was on under the bathroom door, and a shadow could be seen moving about within the light. Naruto's mind settled down and his eyes turned off. He sighed deep and lay back against the couch once more, relaxing in the fact that Hinata was in the bathroom and hadn't finished her breakfast yet.

'_Damn…'_ he thought to himself, _'That witch Guren really fucked up my head… I'm going on high alert… I need to relax a bit more…'_

"Oh, you're awake? Breakfast is on the counter for you."

Naruto was jarred from his thoughts by Hinata's voice, and he turned.

"W-wow…"

Naruto could find little else to say as Hinata strolled toward him, now carrying the foil-covered plate. However, it wasn't the food that got his attention… it was Hinata's choice of apparel that had his eyes bugging out of his head.

He must have been dead tired, because to have been able to sleep through Hinata's awakening, extraction from his arms, and changing into no more than a thin nightgown, followed by her cooking breakfast was a feat to which no other man could attest. The main reason for THAT being that Naruto was really the only man she'd ever dated.

Hinata sauntered over, removing the foil from the plate while balancing it on one palm like a professional server. Naruto could only watch as Hinata got up close to him, gave him a beaming smile, and then…

… Grabbed his hair and plastered his face in the food.

Naruto stayed stock still for a moment, stunned, as the syrup from the pancakes dripped from the ends of the slices of bacon that had become wedged in his nose. The pancakes were now crumbled and scattered across his face, dotting the whiskers marks on his cheeks like perforation lines. He kept his hands at his sides as he slowly rose and stumbled his way into the bathroom, bumping into three walls, stubbing his toes twice, and hitting his head on the bathroom counter after tripping on the floor trim along the way. Soon, the only sound that rang in his ears, aside from the water from the faucet, was Hinata's laughter, coupled with the sounds of fists and feet pounding the floor. He couldn't believe it; she'd cooked him breakfast… just to smash it in his face and laugh at him?

IT WAS THE BEST PRANK EVER!

As Naruto thought of all the elements of what Hinata had just done, he had to admit to himself that she'd gotten him good. If she hadn't been wearing that nightgown or walked towards him the way she had, he would have been able to pick up on subtle hints, like a slight blush on her face.

As soon as he felt the last of the sticky, greasy mess leave his skin, he turned off the water and waited, watching Hinata roll on the floor in hysteric laughter, until he was sure she was turned away from him. Now, he would HAVE HIS REVENGE.

Hinata yelped in surprise; when she'd last saw him, Naruto had been washing the mess of his ruined breakfast off his face, so how'd he manage to get behind her so quickly? She didn't have much time to think about that, however, because no sooner had Naruto's arms clamped around her from behind than his fingers began to work trails up and down her stomach and sides that left her sputtering and giggling madly.

Naruto grinned wickedly to himself; his tickle-torture revenge plan was working. A few more minutes and he'd stop, jump in the shower to cleanse his hair of the remaining bacon grease and syrup, and then run down stairs for a quick breakfast before returning to pick up his brilliant bride for a day on the town.

The two rolled around for several minutes, Hinata doing her best, though to no avail, to remove Naruto from her back and catch her breath. The blonde boy could only laugh like a lunatic as he continued tickling his indigo-haired wife in a frenzied trance for several minutes. Finally, when both were out of breath, Naruto let her go and flopped onto the floor next to her, while Hinata lay on her stomach, limp, on the floor, breathing heavily.

Naruto gasped a bit when he felt Hinata drag herself into the crook of his arm, but he smiled and sighed pleasantly when he heard her breathing quietly. Once again, Hinata had fallen asleep with a beaming smile on her face. Naruto could do little more himself and passed out with her in his arms.

This scene met the housekeeping staff when three women in their early twenties entered the room pushing their carts. The three stopped, smiled fondly and shared an "Aww" moment before turning their carts around silently to walk out of the room. They resolved to come back later.

Meanwhile, in their dreams, Naruto and Hinata were back in the Caged Room, where the spirit of the Kyuubi no Yoko had once resided. Naruto stared almost longingly at the empty cage, whose doors were still slammed open and almost torn off their hinges.

Hinata smiled and held Naruto tight to her before gently kissing his lips. He smiled and leaned in to reciprocate.

Seconds later, they let go and Naruto smiled.

"Thanks, Hina-chan… You and you alone make this all worthwhile!" he said happily, letting a chuckle escape his lips as she giggled and rested her head against his shoulder.

In a voice that showed how exhausted she was, Hinata asked, "Could you continue your story, Naru-kun? I don't think you finished it last time."

Naruto smiled and nodded, before allowing his expression to grow pensive.

"Absolutely… I believe we'd just concluded our first meeting with Zabuza-san, right?" Naruto asked, continuing as Hinata nodded softly…

_**_  
CHAPTER 10: THE SPICE OF LIFE & EBB AND FLOW**_

OP: "RE:MEMBER" - FLOW

_**~ I hadn't used much chakra with the eye-based abilities, but the star jutsu drained my reserves by a bit, my being just a fledgling, after all. Regardless, I was still OK for most of the trip to Tazuna-san's house. From there, I knew things were going to hit a new level. ~ **_

_It took a few more hours, but the group finally made it to Nami, where Tazuna led them to his house, making a point to show them all the horrible things Gato had done to the village over the time he'd been there. Once they arrived at Tazuna's house, they were quickly introduced to his daughter, Tsunami, and her son, Inari, who spent most of his time moping around muttering about things being "useless" or "pointless". Naruto had a feeling he'd be doing something about that poor boy._

_For the moment, however, Naruto knew what had to be done. He'd awakened Level Two of his Hoshigan hours before, and he needed to get a handle on his training quick._

_It was five after six in the evening; Naruto stepped out through the backdoor and made for the forest behind the house. For the first two minutes, Naruto meditated, getting an idea from his cousin of what was necessary. _

_**~ I couldn't believe what Kozu-kun told me: three days of working my chakra control in each affinity. ~**_

_Naruto spent a good portion of his first day in the deepest part the forest, alternating between elemental control and standard chakra control exercises; he would spend three hours on an element, then switch to a basic control exercise for an hour before turning to another element. He started with earth, as according to Kozue, it was his weakest element and needed the most work. To that end, Naruto spent the first three hours of his training focusing on rocks and stones that littered the forest floor, trying to pull them towards him and change them during movement, using ONLY his chakra. For the first two-and-a-half hours, he made little to no progress at all. However, during the last thirty minutes, he managed to finally move on small stone towards him, and, as he moved to inspect it, found a small dent on one side that he knew hadn't been there from before._

_After this, he switched to tree climbing. He had known not to expect much for his first attempts, but after thirty tries and no progress, he was beginning to feel the seeds of doubt and worry set in._

_He also heard, for the first time since he arrived, the gurgling of an empty stomach. He forced himself to ignore the rumblings in his gut to continue his training. It took him until his last minute to make any hint of progress, which came in the form of sudden burst of concentration and focus that propelled him to make it five feet up the trunk before he fell backwards and slashed the trunk to mark his progress. He smiled; he was getting there!_

_Next came three hours of Fire Element practice. This was accomplished by simply holding a leaf in his hand and setting it aflame, but holding his chakra around the leaf and the fire to keep the leaf from burning. Once again, he had little luck for the bulk of his practice, but managed to get the hang of it around the end of the second hour. This raised his spirits considerably. From there he moved to water walking, which Kozue had informed him could also count towards another round of elemental practice. Thus, Naruto extended this particular session's time limit to four hours._

_He started out simply running at the water, keeping a constant flux of chakra exuding from the soles of his feet; when this inevitably failed, he switched to coating his entire body in suiton chakra to keep from sucking in any water. This part of his training seemed to be easier than most. He managed to keep up his water barrier until he reached the shore. Several more times he attempted this the same way, and wound up underwater, protected by his water shield, each and every time. _

_However, he was beginning to realize something important. He had an affinity for water; he'd seen it at work with how long and how strong he could make his protective field. So, he reasoned, why wouldn't it make sense to use that same affinity to enhance his water-walking practice? It counted as the same thing… right?_

_As Naruto soon discovered, he was both right and wrong. He proved his theory well enough as he proceeded to dash across the lake and back to the shore without once losing his grip on the water. It was when he tried going without again, however, that he discovered the weakness I his plan. His water affinity did nothing to boost his normal chakra control in that respect; he'd have to do all the work on his own and only rely on his water affinity for going under… at least, for now._

_So, for the duration of his four hours, Naruto struggled hard, forcing himself to exude extra chakra to pop up on the surface of the water. Just before his time limit run out, he managed to stand on the water without sinking. Naruto nodded and walked back to the shore, nodding to himself contentedly; after all, even a small amount of progress was better than no progress._

_With that finished, Naruto spent the rest of his first day repeating that cycle, switching every three hours, then again after one, and then every four for his water training. _

_**~ I really enjoyed the first day. By the end of it, I'd almost mastered my Fire Affinity, and my Water Affinity was strong enough to rival a jonin's. My Earth Affinity still needed a bit of work, but I knew I had time for that later. My biggest problem at the time was my stamina. I'd been able to go a few hours without food before; the mobs had been VERY sure that I was weak and stumbling on several of their "raids". **_

_**I'd never been more than four hours without food or rest, though. By the end of the first day, I was already running on about half a tank of energy, and I was losing strength fast. I knew I had to press on, though. I had no time for rest, no room for error. ~**_

_The next twenty-four hours were more straining on Naruto's body, but for a less obvious reason: Naruto was training his Lightning, Wind, and Chaos affinities, following the same basic schedule as the day before._

_To that end, he started into three hours of Wind training, which involved unleashing a single burst of Fuuton chakra to lift the leaves off the forest floor, and then manipulate and monitor his chakra output to keep the leaves suspended, while simultaneously using small, subtle blasts of extra futon chakra to slice the leaves into pieces. Unlike the day before, he found himself progressing quite quickly in this training, as he'd managed to suspend the leaves AND himself six feet in the air, AND dice the leaves into atom-sized pieces by the time his time limit ended. Giving a contented sigh, He nodded and moved on to Tree Walking again._

_After the day before, Naruto had managed to make it half-way up one of the massive trees before he fell off. However, during his first hour the second day, he managed to run eighty-percent of the way up the tree before he fell off. He was quick enough to release a quick burst of Fuuton chakra to slow his fall. By the end, he'd manage to reach his goal: the ninety-percent mark. He released another contented sigh before smiling wide and setting about his next bout of training._

_~MEANWHILE~_

_In the trees not too far away from Naruto was a lone figure. The figure belonged to none other than Haku, who was there on orders from Zabuza to spy on "that blonde little brat" so he'd have an idea of what to expect in their rematch. However, she hadn't exactly been able to follow through on her orders as planned. Watching this boy struggle, and similarly, seeing his progress over only twenty-four hours, had her getting that strange feeling in her stomach again. However, once she saw him go twenty-four hours straight, and then keep going with another set of training, that strange feeling escalated to a strange itch that she couldn't seem to be rid of, no matter how hard she scratched with her nails. Seeing how powerful he was with Fuuton chakra only made things worse, as the itch now became a burning sensation that simply refused to go away, no matter how hard she fought to ignore it._

_After watching him slowly and accurately slice the leaves around him into infinitesimal pieces, Haku could barely control herself anymore, and, using the breathing techniques Zabuza had taught her for assassinations, she allowed her right hand to approach her body and an agonizingly slow pace. It started weak; a little personal petting over the clothes so it wouldn't be noticeable…_

_However, as Naruto reached the three-quarter point on his chosen tree, Haku's control broke down completely. She gasped silently as her right hand slid into the opening of her kimono, while her left snaked its way into her panties. Haku struggled against herself for a moment, but one more glance at Naruto caused her to throw caution to the wind. Within seconds of watching Naruto create an array of leaves on the ground and then lift them over a foot off the ground via a current of Raiton chakra…_

_Haku suddenly felt a massive pain in her head._

_She sat up, realizing she was "standing" on her shoulders, with her head nearly perpendicular to the ground. She looked up and shook her head before darting off to the base she shared with Zabuza. She'd figure out how to deal with her… problem when she finished reporting in._

_Unfortunately, she wouldn't be so lucky this day. She realized she wouldn't be getting back for a little when she felt a pull on her collar. She turned to see Naruto standing alone in the middle of the clearing…_

_However, if he was standing in the clearing… who was tugging her collar?_

_~IN THE CLEARING~_

_Naruto shook his head as he pulled, using a quick burst of his Fuuton Chakra to yank Haku over to his position. When she landed on her rear and looked him in the eyes through the holes in her mask, he smiled a bit._

"_I knew you were there, Haku-san. Why don't we do each other a favor?" he asked innocently. Haku's shoulders slumped at his tone, but tensed again at the hint in his voice._

"_W-what k-k-kind of f-f-favor did you h-have in m-mind?" she stuttered, suddenly very afraid of the boy that had edged her master out of the running for "Strongest Shinobi ever" in her books._

_Naruto just kept smiling as he intoned, "I need a living partner to test my control of my Konton Jutsu on. You help me test it, and I won't use it against Zabuza-san in our rematch. Sound fair?"_

_Haku barely had a chance to nod before she realized that the entire clearing had been drained of its light, and that she was only able to see things around her through white outlines. Over the next three hours, Naruto left no room for relaxing her guard as he chased Haku around the clearing, holding his technique as strong as he could. No matter what Haku did, she found herself incapable of utilizing her Hyoton jutsu. In fact, she found it to be exactly the opposite._

_She wasn't able to use her Hyoton in this setting, but was more than capable of injuring herself trying. Several times in one minute she tried firing a sharp icicle at Naruto to fend him off, but instead found herself collapsing to the ground when the icicle she tried to make froze the finger she made it with and snapped it clean off. By the time Naruto's three hours were up, Haku's hands were no more than thumbs and frozen stumps. Naruto spent two quick seconds flash-healing her hands, and, before Haku knew it, her hands were entirely back to normal. _

_**- . . . You used HAKU-SAN, as a training partner against her will? -**_

_**~ For lack of a better way to phrase it, yes. If she'd kept moving towards the tree she'd been in, she'd have been able to escape; I made it so she could leave if she wanted to. It's not as if I really FORCED her to stay. I aimed her towards that same tree several times, hoping she'd take the hint and run, but she never did. It was as if she was trying to play with me, or something. ~**_

_**- Maybe she was… I'll have to have a talk with her about that when we return to Konoha… -**_

_**~ As long as you don't cripple, maim, or kill her in this 'Talk', I'm fine with it. Anything that keeps her from either the hospital or the Morgue is acceptable. She's still on active duty, after all, and we have a LOT of enemies kicking about. Now… where was I? ~**_

_As Naruto switched to water-walking again, he nodded to Haku, signaling she should leave, and that he'd hold up his end of the bargain._

_Haku stopped before leaving and, after a moment's debate, asked, "Naruto-san, would you be alright with me returning to further aide you in your Konton training? I could be quite useful to you in that respect, and I'm sure you could use all the help you can get."_

_Naruto, just stepping back onto the shore from another Suiton-controlled swim, thought for less than a second and said, "Alright. Just make sure you pass it by Zabuza-san first. We wouldn't want him going after you for helping me get stronger!"_

_**- . . . I honestly don't know whether I should strangle YOU or maim HER. -**_

_**~ Hina-chan, please, try to understand. I couldn't logically come back to Tazuna-san house and ask you, Shino or Sensei to help me train when I'd already been out for more than a day on my own. In that vein, I'd be wasting time, and I wasn't allowed to pause my training until a full three days were up. With me needing a living person to test my Konton control on, what else was I supposed to do? And please don't give me the pouting eyes; at the time, I had no other choice. I'd have had to stop and restart my training, which could, in all seriousness, resulted in the failing of our mission. I couldn't let that happen. ~**_

_**- You make it sound so easy to make this stuff up… -**_

_**~ . . . Did you REALLY Just say that? I'm not making this up, Hina-chan. I was running on the same logic I've been using since that day. I wouldn't lie to you, nor would I fool around behind your back. You know that! It was nothing more than training. I swear on my life! ~**_

_**- I'm sorry. I didn't mean for it to come out that way… I swear! -**_

_**~It's all right… I just wish we didn't keep having these little misunderstandings… ~**_

_**- It's what happens in a relationship, Naru-kun… -**_

_**~ I know… I just… I don't know. What say we move back to the story now? I'm getting kind of depressed talking about this stuff… ~**_

_With that, Haku nodded and took off in search of Zabuza. After she reported and gained permission to train with him, she'd set off immediately, leaving Zabuza to his own training. Luckily, she was long gone when his fist impacted the torso of a large training dummy he'd been using to improve his kenjutsu… and exploded it as he shouted a simple four letter word that conveyed his rage._

"_FUCK!" Zabuza shouted, pulling his fist form the center of the dummy, "That little BRAT HAD To go and learn a powerful technique! Now none of my water skills will be useful! Got to think on my feet now… what's the best way to make this work… DAMN IT ALL TO HELL, THINK ZABUZA, THINK!"_

_While the hulking brute raged to no definite end, Haku had returned to the clearing and, more specifically, to her perch in her tree. She watched, intently, as Naruto returned to his Wind Training. She marveled at his intuitiveness and creativity; instead of replicating what he'd done before, Naruto had chosen instead to try and control the flow of the wind itself through wide, circular arm gestures. _

_At first, she saw nothing happening at all. However, several moments later, she watched, awestruck, as the wind, following Naruto's arm motions, turned into a helix-shaped lateral storm that gusted left and right, but was quickly brought to a head by Naruto's steady movements. Eventually the gusting winds calmed to a slow, gentle breeze that Naruto wrapped around himself to "levitate off of the ground. He kept the miniature tornado at his feet by chakra control alone for the remainder of his now two hours, all the while leaning in different directions and discovering the wonders of "flight".*_

_Haku could barely contain herself, as each and every new accomplishment the small boy tacked onto his belt only served to stoke the flames within her. She had to form a small casing of ice around herself after she nearly fell out of the tree again, and only came out when Naruto called for her help in his training. She made sure not to let him find out what she was really doing in her little… hideaway._

_As it came to pass, the second day ended and Haku leapt away, smiling at Naruto under her mask. Her smile widened when she saw the fading sight of him smiling back at her… and then vanished completely as she contemplated whether he could actually see her face behind the mask. She had to force the thought to the back of her mind for the time being as she barely avoided slamming full-force into a tree in her distracted state._

_Back with Naruto, he'd quickly placed his body on auto-pilot and gone into his mind to sign the contracts for his stronger Heaven and Hell powers, then jumped back into his body to begin his training. He nodded to himself, going over the seals and motions he'd need._

_**~ I'd gotten the feeling that the Heaven, Hell, and Chaos techniques would be difficult to learn… However, after two straight days with no breaks or food, I was fighting back the urge to give up the ghost. I'd never gone that long without food before… It was more challenging than the Graduation test! Still, I wasn't about to give up. ~**_

_Naruto nodded to himself, forcing his conscious mind to stay active. He needed to stay awake for the remainder of his training. He didn't have the ability to rest yet. So, it made sense to him that he start off with the Tenton techniques, as most of them were healing techniques, and some even helped in the restoration of chakra. _

_He sat still on the ground for several minutes, forcing himself to continue practicing his control over the powers of heaven. For the first half-hour, he felt nothing, and made no progress. However, at the forty-five minute mark, he finally felt the strength in his body start to pick up: he was making the technique work! At an urging from Kozue in his mind, he put his body back on auto-pilot, allowing him to enter his subconscious for a time._

_For the remainder of his time limit, he talked with his parents, carried on a nice, quiet chat with Kozue for a while, and then, as his time limit approached, bade his family good bye and returned to his body._

_Over the remaining twenty-one hours, Naruto continued to sharpen his skills, his body slightly reinvigorated from his practice of Tenton healing techniques. Over his first few hours, he managed to establish a rather tenuous control over his Makaiton techniques. However, as he neared the end of his final day, Naruto managed to get his control up to what he considered mid-Chuunin level._

_Little did he know he'd crossed that particular threshold several hours before; he was closer to high-jonin control by the end of day three._

_Therefore, it was in his semi-revitalized, yet still completely exhausted state, that Naruto dragged himself through the back door of Tazuna's house. He was awake for less than two seconds before he passed out; strangely, he found himself in a small pair of arms, rather than on the floor half a second before he felt his body shut down._

"_H-Hinata-san…" he said weakly. That was the last thing he said, or even thought, before everything went black._

_**~ Ah, the sweet bliss of unconsciousness… Although, I believe you'd know more about that than I would; am I right, Hina-chan? When you awoke to Level 2, you were out for two weeks… ~**_

_**- I know. It was too hard to stay awake that long… I had to keep starting over! How on this earth did YOU manage to stay up so long? -**_

_**~ Let's just say that evading those flash mobs for the first few years of my life instilled a sense of paranoia in me that I don't let many people see… I somehow get the sad feeling that, even now that I'm Hokage, I'll still be looking over my shoulders every time I go out in public… ~**_

_**- After what you've been put through, Naru-kun, I wouldn't blame you… I'd probably have run away by that point, though… I wouldn't have been able to handle the stress and pain… -**_

_**~ If our roles HAD been reversed, Hina-chan, you still would have had me for a friend. Two kindred spirits don't just find each other and leave each other alone. I'd have willingly banished MYSELF from the Hyuuga Clan and gone with you wherever your feet took you, protecting you to the best of my abilities. ~**_

_**- … When did you become such a romantic? -**_

_**~ You really think I'm joking, or trying to be romantic, don't you? I'm being DEAD serious here. I would have left with you if our roles were reversed. Each of us would STILL have been the only friend the other could trust, and I wouldn't EVER let you go anywhere alone. Everyone needs one good friend to can rely on. Had our places been reversed, I'd have stuck by you to the end in a heartbeat. No lies, no jokes. ~**_

_**- I know, Naru-kun. That was a test, and you passed with flying colors. You've made it abundantly clear over the past years that you would have been there for me regardless of what came our ways… And if our places had been switched at birth, I would have been elated to have someone like you for a friend. -**_

_**~ I know you'd do the same for me, after all. I'd be one hell of a horrible person if I didn't reciprocate your kindness! Now, what say we get back to our story? ~**_

_Naruto came to several days later and immediately set about looking for food with which he could fill his roaring empty stomach. Tsunami was only too happy and willing to let Naruto clean out the family cupboards; after hearing what Naruto had put himself through for the three days he was gone, she thought it was only right he be allowed to eat as much as he wanted._

_She wasn't prepared, however, for Naruto's voracious appetite. Not only did he clean out their cabinets, he all but dragged the poor woman through the village in search of EVERY scrap of food he could possibly find… after he'd cleaned out his personal supply of emergency food rations and dried meals from his backpack. The poor woman was floored, to say the least, as she watched the boy all but pick the village down to the foundations of its buildings in his quest to fulfill his seemingly bottomless appetite._

_She was relieved when Naruto stopped eating several hours after his awakening, but had to restrain herself from slapping her face with the palm of her hand when Naruto nonchalantly proclaimed that he was only half-full._

_This was simply too much for poor Tsunami to take With everything he HAD eaten, which included such indigestible items as nearly an entire forest worth of trees, roots and all, and several steel swing sets, he was still only half-full._

_If this were truly the case, how would he fully sate his hunger next? Would he take to hunting the animals and birds of the forest? Would he start consuming the ground beneath their feet, right down to the infertile bedrock? Or perhaps he'd take up cannibalism and begin eating the villagers… starting with her? The thoughts swimming in the poor woman's head caused her to promptly faint. She didn't know what she'd wake up to see, or if she'd wake up at all… but at the time, she couldn't care less._

_**- Did you REALLY have to tell her you were only half-full? Why couldn't you have kept that to yourself so your team could deal with it? You know we could have sent for emergency supplies if we needed to. -**_

_**~ I know, really I do… I didn't mean to scare her that badly! I was still running on half a brain at that point; I was still half-asleep! That makes for a bad combination with me. You know that better than anyone else does; we've been living together for a couple years now, after all. ~**_

_Naruto hoisted the taller woman into his arms and made for Tazuna's house, where he burst through the door and set Tsunami down on the couch. It only took a couple of hours for Tsunami to awake to the sight of Naruto sitting over her with a worried look; a look that, despite its intent to convey his worry and concern, served instead to send the terrified woman into screaming fits for ten minutes that only ended when she passed out from over-exertion._

_**~ I couldn't do much to help her… Nevertheless, I felt I should leave her alone for a while. In any case, I think we should skip the next couple days, as nothing interesting happened, and go straight to the rematch. ~**_

_Over the next several days, Team Kurenai continued their individual training regiments. Hinata took to using the trees as Jyuken training dummies; she called is "training with dummies", but she was really using them to unleash the majority of her pent up familial frustrations. Since the moment they'd arrived, Shino had been working tirelessly on restoring the numbers in his hive, and he was proud to know that he was almost back up to full strength. He'd started sending his bugs out to varying places to map them out so he could get around easier._

_Kurenai, despite being of Jounin rank, knew she had a LONG way to go if she wanted to be anything but the back-up for her powerhouse students. Thus, while Naruto, now bearing what he CLAIMED to be the Hoshigan's third level, continued to further his control and mastery of his abilities through more tiring training, Kurenai sat in a tree, slowly working a genjutsu over her students that reacted differently with each of their minds. _

_When the illusion hit Hinata, she couldn't tell anything was different and just kept hitting the trees. However, after about three more hits, she noticed that her attacks were doing much less damage to the bark then before. Then again, she had already struck quite the dent into the trunk of her current "dummy", so she moved around to a side of the tree that wasn't damaged. One punch was all it took to convince her that she was either tiring out, or that the trees were somehow sentient and trying to prevent her from harming them further. Thus, without realizing it, after a drink of water, Hinata continued punishing the trees around her, continually doing no more physically than flicking them with her fingers. Kurenai watched as, with the continued rise in Hinata's frustration, the amount of damage she dealt continued to increase exponentially. Kurenai eventually had to switch trees three times to avoid being discovered._

_Shino was a little harder to trick, as he was blind, and since insects had compound eyes, there was little she could do to stump the boy. Therefore, she turned her sights on Naruto, who was once again working on his Katon control. As the illusion hit him, he sneezed violently, not only creating a very LARGE plume of fire from his mouth, but also temporarily breaking Kurenai's illusion. Kurenai was surprised when it happened… mainly because Naruto's sneeze sounded like "KAI". So, without a second thought, Kurenai reactivated her genjutsu, working it strong into the two of her students could actually SEE it. Once again, Hinata returned to unleashing the full power of her growing fury._

_Shino continued to expand the numbers of his hive until he was almost literally overflowing with new larvae. Naruto continued strengthening his elemental control. At one point while practicing his Suiton control, he accidentally soaked Hinata with a burst of water shot from his hand like a softball. The blast, which had, actually, been the size of a small sphere, soon expanded and formed a small tidal wave that not only served to soak Hinata down to the bones, but also to cool down her ever growing rage._

_**- I still should thank you for cooling me off, Naru-kun… maybe after we wake up I'll give you a little… PRESENT. - **_

_**~ Why do I suddenly get the feeling that I should back away slowly when I wake up, or face running down the streets with my hair on fire screaming about my balls bleeding? ~**_

_**- I don't know WHAT you're being so paranoid for, Naru-kun… Now continue the story, please. -**_

_**~ Y-yes, ma'am… ~**_

_Thus, the rest of the week passed, and the day finally came. Team Kurenai stepped onto the bridge, having promised Tazuna that he wouldn't break the bridge too badly. Tazuna had gone into a rage at this declaration, but had calmed as a small caravan of traders showed up in the city square. Naruto sensed something odd about the traders, and told his team to hang back and deal with them, and that he'd meet them on the bridge… when everything was over and done._

_This sent of warning signals in Hinata's head, but not knowing what Naruto was planning, all she could logically do was consent his request. Therefore, as Naruto ran off to the bridge, Hinata, Shino and Kurenai stood by, watched as the merchants open up their carts…, and pulled out weapons, while flashing the villagers ruthless, blood-thirsty grins. This set them moving, and the three shinobi tore into the group of attacking mercenaries._

_Meanwhile, Naruto had just arrived on the bridge to see Zabuza waiting._

"_There you are, Namikaze-gaki… You certainly TOOK long enough," said the taller man, a hint of boredom and annoyance in his voice. Naruto shook his head. _

"_Well, what exactly do you want from me?" Naruto asked, "We met a convoy of Gato's men on the way here. I found a temporary way to keep my team out of our little affair, but Haku-san's aide will most definitely be needed. So, shall we get started?" With that, Naruto stopped talking and stood absolutely still. _

_Zabuza couldn't understand the boy's stance; there was no intent to attack or defend. Was there some weird trick, or a hidden style? He'd have to be EXTRA careful._

_**- Was there really a secret style at work? -**_

_**~ No, there wasn't actually, not at all. I was just trying to scare him a little. I think I accomplished that rather well. ~**_

_Zabuza was careful as he settled into his own stance; crouched just slightly on one leg with both arms cocked at the elbow, he considered himself ready for battle._

_The two warriors stared each other down for a solid two minutes before the first move was shown. _

_Zabuza activated the Kirigakure Jutsu again and covered the entire battleground with thick mist. Naruto, knowing what was coming, Activating his Hoshigan, Naruto turned on his Suiton control and quickly filled the mist in the air around him with his chakra. Soon, the cloud of thick, white mist had become a thrice-thickened mire of blue fog thicker than the thickest pea soup. Finding himself trapped in his own technique, Zabuza stopped cold, looking back and forth with eyes wide from paranoia, sweating slightly._

'How the hell did this brat learn to do that?' _Zabuza asked himself, feeling the first pangs of fear in years. _

"_Scared yet, Zabuza-san?" Naruto asked, his voice echoing through the mist. Zabuza's eyes darted from side to side as he scanned for any sign of the little blonde brat._

_Unfortunately, he was ill-prepared for Naruto's first move. Naruto burst through the fog and threw a strong left hook that connected with Zabuza's cheek; this made the taller man stumble to one leg. When Zabuza regained his footing, Naruto had disappeared. _

'WHAT THE HELL?! WHERE DID THIS LITTLE PUNK HAVE THE TIME TO DEVELOP THAT LEVEL OF SPEED?!'_ Zabuza thought. He was forced from his thoughts and into the ground by another powerful punch to the face, courtesy of his petite foe._

_Thus, the sequence continued for about a minute, with Zabuza rising slowly to his feet only to be knocked back down again, each time charging a different element into his fist; a burst of flame, a crack of thunder, a blast of wind, a deluge of water, and a crushing boulder, all one after the other._

_**~ It was all for a reason… one he was soon to discover. ~**_

_Through sheer force of will, Zabuza managed to stay awake after the boulder punch while planning his next course of action; the next time Naruto zipped in to clip him, he grabbed the boy by the wrist, catching him off guard. Zabuza didn't waste any time and pressed his advantage by hoisting the small boy into the air by his wrist and repeatedly punching his stomach. Naruto winced with each strike, feeling a series of bruises spring to life on his muscles while several ribs began shifting out of place. After about two minutes of this, Zabuza held the now weakened boy in the air, grinning behind his bandages._

"_So, RUNT," Zabuza said, overconfidence oozing thick in his voice, "you ACTUALLY expected to beat me? Looks to me like that weird power of yours from a week ago was more of a one-off than anything else!"_

_**~ He was so smug… good thing I got the chance to fix him of that. ~**_

_Naruto's face twisted into a crazed smirk and his vocal cords loosed the sound of insane laughter._

_**~ I was trying to unnerve him. Somehow, I think I accomplished that. ~**_

"_WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU LAUGHING AT, YOU LITTLE PUNK?" Zabuza snapped. _

_Lifting his head to stare Zabuza in the eyes, Naruto said, "I'M LAUGHING BECAUSE YOU'VE STEPPED INTO A TRAP, LOSER!" With a single kick to the ribs, Naruto loosed himself from Zabuza's grasp and rolled a few feet away._

_Meanwhile, outside the fog cloud, Haku was watching intently… and was trying to make sense of what she was feeling. In her heart, she knew she should be rooting for her boss, Zabuza, who'd picked her up on the street at a young age; he was like a father to her, as he'd practically raised her himself. However, in a deep, dark part of her mind, she felt she should be rooting for the blonde boy, the pint-sized brat who had proven he was FAR more than a match for her master; he was quickly proving himself to be her master's superior, and he was less than a third of Zabuza's age!_

_She'd watched in morbid fascination as her boss threw down the gauntlet and went in for the kill by using his Kirigakure jutsu; however, she had found herself once more in awe of the blonde boy's power as the mist thickened into a fog thicker than the thickest pea soup. She watched as the fog colored itself blue to match the chakra he'd used to override Zabuza's control of it. Once more, she found herself feeling that burning sensation inside, and she knew there was little she could do to stop or stem it._

_Then, she heard a twig snap._

_As she turned to face the possible threat, she discovered it wasn't a twig that had snapped, by a dead body; impaled through the chest on a tree branch two yards away was the upper portion of a grown man, while what appeared to be his legs lay abandoned on the ground below. Looking up from the grisly sight, she saw three people approaching. _

_The first was a young girl in a cream-colored sweater who was sending her a glare with creamy white eyes that seemed to burn with anger. The second was a young boy with shades who hid his face behind a high-collared jacket, but seemed to be quivering in place. The last was a young woman in a strange sort of red-and-white dress that resembled interlocking bandages with a rose thorn pattern. The older woman's eyes were blood-red and had an extra ring around the pupils. _

_Haku moved to intercept the smaller girl, only to be met with an evolved death glare that could have melted her in place._

"_I cannot allow you to pass," Haku said, sending her own weak glare back at the creamy-eyes girl, who barely seemed fazed. _

"_YOU WILL GET OUT OF MY WAY NOW, OR I'LL DO __**WORSE**__ TO YOU THAN THAT THUG BACK THERE GOT!" Hinata shouted angrily, her body literally shaking with rage. Haku almost took an involuntary step back; something inside her was screaming at her to run and hide; she could care less about the consequences now!_

_However, the logical part of her brain knew the only course of action was to stand her ground and defend the battleground._

"_I'm sorry, was I speaking another language? I do believe I spoke clearly… Let me try again," Haku said, the eye slits in her mask glowing an icy blue as a large ice spike erupted from the ground between her and Hinata._

"_YOU SHALL NOT PASS!" Haku shouted, her hair breaking free of its ponytail and whipping about like the hair of Medusa, while an aura of death flared around her._

_Hinata wasn't even fazed; instead, her own hair started whipping about like serpents, and an icier aura of pure rage and destruction sprang to life around her._

"_YOU WILL LETT ME THROUGH OR I'LL DESTROY YOU! THE DEVIL WON'T BE ABLE TO PIECE YOU BACK TOGETHER WHEN I'M DONE!" Hinata screamed back, her eyes erupting with fire… before completely changing color and gaining a rose petal design in the pupils._

_Things had JUST gotten serious, and Kurenai wasn't about to let it continue._

"_BOTH OF YOU STAND DOWN AT ONCE!" she screamed, silently wondering if Hinata had been in contact with any grey-haired wizards in the past few years._

_Her shout wasn't enough to stir the two girls from their anger-fueled Aura war. Shino had long since jumped into a distant tree to avoid getting caught in the crossfire._

_Kurenai had to think fast or things were going to escalate to cataclysmic proportions. She knew there was only one thing that would end this, so she acted on it:_

"_UZUMAKI NARUTO, GET YOUR LITTLE BUTT OUT OF THAT CLOUD OR I'M COMING IN AFTER YOU!" Kurenai shouted. Almost instantaneously, the cloud of fog burst into a den of electricity that forced BOTH Hinata and Haku away from it. A loud, rumbling scream emanated from the cloud of fog mere minutes before it began dissipating._

_When the fog cleared, what they saw was…_

_**- I know you've explained it multiple times, but could you tell me what happened again? -**_

_**~ Absolutely, my little princess, as you wish. ~ **_

_**~MOMENTS EARLIER, WITHIN THE CLOUD ~**_

_Inside the cloud, Zabuza was glaring holes in Naruto's head._

"_What do you mean, a "trap"? I don't think you've got what it takes to make a god one!" Zabuza said. Naruto simply glared at him._

"_You haven't figured it out?" Naruto asked, slightly dumbfounded, "The elemental punches I've been nailing you with have been charging the atmosphere around us! We're in a CLOUD OF FOG you fool! Use water to add precipitation, ass fire to evaporate it, a little wind to stir it together and start a storm front, and throw in some lightning and debris from the Earth Punch for extra injuries! I'VE TURNED THIS DAMN CLOUD INTO A THUNDER CLOUD! IN ADDITION, I'VE GOT THE ACTIVATOR IN MY HAND; The second I turn this thing on, you'll be struck from every conceivable direction by hundreds of bolts of lightning, all at once. I wouldn't be surprised if you survive… I'll be surprised if you're still CONSCIOUS after you get fried."_

_Zabuza's eyes widened, and he took a step back as a bolt of lightning arced out, passed his face, and shot back into the cloud. This little BRAT had him cornered! Nevertheless, he wasn't out of ideas yet…_

"_You think I'm done? I've still got a few tricks left, brat!" Zabuza said as his hands began forming a series of handseals. Naruto's eyes widened comically as he watched a series of small projectiles form on the tips of Zabuza's fingers._

"_Suiton: Hayai-Renzoku Tepodama no Jutsu!"* Zabuza shouted, unleashing three rapid-fire bursts of five water projectiles, spraying them over a large area. Naruto could only duck and roll to avoid being hit by one._

"_How?" the boy asked; Zabuza smirked and chuckled._

"_This cloud is MADE of water, you idiot!" Zabuza shouted, gesturing to the cloud around them, "This thing may only respond to your command, but by the same principle that allowed you to hijack my Kirigakure and turn it into this, I can still use the water inside it to attack you back! SO GET READY FOR MORE!" With that, Zabuza flashed through another set of handseals and held his arms aloft._

"_SUITON: SANMIZURAPPA RYUDAN NO JUTSU!"* Zabuza roared, unleashing a giant wave of water from behind him. The wave surged toward Naruto, only to split into three large dragons made entirely of the wave's water. Naruto's eyes almost popped out of his head as he frantically dodged to avoid the three dragons. He succeeded, but only by a thin margin._

_Zabuza flashed through those same handseals three more times. This sent nine more dragons careening at Naruto, who stumbled back into the cloud to avoid being hit. Naruto saw Zabuza readying one more round, and waited._

_When Zabuza launched his fifth round of water dragons, Naruto struck._

_**~ The next technique I used had to have been the single most insane thing I'd thought up. Not counting anything I've invented recently, of course… I think that Galactic Rasen Shuriken I used the other day kind of tops a giant thunder cloud of laser projectiles… ~ **_

_With the Water and Lightning Points of his eyes shining brightly, shouted, "RANTON: SATSUI REIZA KOUSEN SHO NO JUTSU!" with a simple clap of his hands, the cloud burst to life, launching hundreds of thousands of small, piercing projectiles. Zabuza managed to avoid a few and dodge a few more, but ultimately was brought down to his knees when, following a single blast grazing his side, the projectiles converged on his body and pierced his chest. _

_Zabuza could do little more than utter a rumbling scream of pain that sounded like a lion roaring. Naruto held focus on the technique for a good minute or so, but stopped when he saw Zabuza's arms fall limp to his sides. With that, the entire cloud began to dissipate. He walked over, grabbed Zabuza around the back of his neck, and started dragging him._

_This scene met the eyes of Haku and his team as the cloud fully vanished from sight: Zabuza out cold, with Naruto dragging him along behind him by the neck. Haku subconsciously raised her hands to cover the location of her mouth, forgetting that her mask was actually on._

_Hinata stared at Naruto with a mixture of shock and wonder, while Shino simply quivered like a leaf in the wind. Kurenai, on the other hand, fainted cold. This kid was simply a MONSTER of a ninja; no nine-year-old since Kakashi Hatake had EVER had that level of power._

_Hinata gasped seconds later as Naruto stumbled and collapsed, hitting the ground on his face. The pale-eyed girl ran up and picked him up, helping him regain consciousness moments later._

_Naruto passed out again soon after awaking, and his condition was determined to be chakra exhaustion. He'd have to spend a few days in bed to recover. Therefore, once Kurenai awoke from her fainting spell, she jumped to the reins. She and Haku shared the taller Zabuza, helping each other lug him back to Tsunami's house while Hinata and Shino helped Naruto to his feet and helped him walk back to their lodging._

_A few days later, after Naruto explained the circumstances behind his rematch with Zabuza, and after Hinata had gotten through giving him a thorough beating for almost costing her his presence with his stupid bet, the six shinobi had a surprise visit from Gato and his men at Tsunami's house while Tazuna was out finishing the bridge. _

_Zabuza had easily dispatched Gato's goons before Tsunami and Inari surprised everyone by tossing a pair of kitchen knives with terrifying accuracy at Gato as he fled the house. Naruto's eyebrows ratcheted up a few notches when the two knives pierced the short man's head fifty feet away, shredding through his brain. Zabuza had earnestly praised mother and son for their incredible teamwork and accuracy. Tsunami revealed that while her father was at work, she had been slowly training Inari in the art of knife throwing in order to protect their home, and then both mother and son revealed a set of harnesses under their clothes lined with sharp knives. Naruto blinked and laughed. ~_

Moments after finishing his story, Naruto and Hinata awakened on the floor of their hotel room, still curled up together the way they had been after Naruto's bout of tickle torture revenge. The two smiled at each other and set about their business; Naruto had to change his clothes, as they still had traces of maple syrup and bacon grease on them, while Hinata had to shower and change for the afternoon. Being tickled for so long had made her break a sweat, and now her nightgown was soaked.

The two quickly finished their business and left for an afternoon together, hoping nothing else would happen to royally screw up their plans…

~ THE END… FOR NOW… ~

Hope you liked it! ^_^ Just to let everyone know, the next chapter is going to be a ways away; not only do I have to do a bit of planning, I have a couple plot bunnies that need to be put to words so they stop ripping my brain apart. ^^; Just so you're forewarned. ^_^

And by the way, for those wondering, I borrowed that little bit about 'circular hand motions' from "Avatar: The Last Airbender", and, in particular, the Wind Bending Tribe's techniques. AND I'M TALKING THE ORIGINAL ONE; I' have never watched Legend of Korra and will never even consider picking up M. Night Shyamalan's "The Last Airbender". Not an option; I'm a traditionalist. Besides, in my opinion, they royally screwed up Dragon Ball Z by making it RL and changing EVERYTHING, so to my way of thinking, no matter what anime they touch next, they're just going to RUIN it. I feel it's best to stay pure and true to the original. ^_^

For those wondering, the various technique names are thus:

Konton: Sou Tennen Hanten=Chaos Release: Total Natural Inversion: The ONLY Chaos Release jutsu Naruto is capable of using, as it is the only one known to exist. At its core, Sou Tennen Hanten is, as it name implies, a total reversal of the laws of nature, to the point of a shinobi's strongest affinity becoming their worst asset. In addition, their weakest affinity now becomes their strongest, and only a shinobi who has trained their weakest affinity to a certain degree will be able to make it work to their advantage while under the effects of this jutsu. Additionally, this technique also completely negates the use of genjutsu of any kind or strength. Naruto can also use this technique to break genjutsu, as the effects of this jutsu work on any genjutsu, whether the illusion was erected prior to or during the use of Sou Tennen Hanten. This technique is, however, Naruto's most powerful, and most draining, next to the Saigo no Ten. It is ONLY to be used as a last-ditch move to throw his foe off enough to finish them off with one strike.

Suiton: Hayai-Renzoku Tepodama no Jutsu=Water Release: Quick-Succession Water Bullet Technique: Zabuza creates a small water projectile on the tip of each finger, then fires while forming another immediately after. This works for three launches minimum; maximum depends on how much chakra the user pumps into the technique.

Suiton: Sanmizurappa Ryudan no Jutsu=Water Release: Three Wild Water Wave Dragon Bullets Technique: Zabuza uses the seals for the Mizurappa and Suiryudan techniques three times in quick succession, interlacing them together to summon a massive wave that spawns three Water Dragons.

Ranton: Satsui Reiza Kousen Sho no Jutsu=Storm Release: Murderous Laser Light Show Technique: Having created a large storm cloud from a cloud of mist and fog, Naruto activates the cloud, sending bursts of electricity and energy arcing through the air. These bursts of energy and lightning will continue to go wild until they catch their target, at which point they'll stop, turn and converge on the enemy from every possible angle.


	11. SPECIAL DOUBLE HEADER!

[A/N]Hey all, Tek again! My deepest apologies for the long delay… this thing has had me entirely stumped for a while since I finished my one-shots. However, I'm back on the assembly line, so here comes Chapter 11! I owe my friend Ace6151 a lot for helping with brainstorming for this chapter, which is being turned into my first ever Christmas Special! :).

In addition, this chapter contains a rather… special character never seen before. The next few chapters are going to be dedicated to her arrival in Konoha.

He has TONS of ideas for new stories, and they're all up for adoption:  
( forum/Original-Characters /118194/)  
( forum/Plot-Bunnies /118331/)  
( forum/Original-Powers-and-Abilities /118859/)

Make sure to pay his pages a visit if you're interested! ^_^

Additionally, I've added another side of the story for this chapter and the next; as such, I'm setting up a legend for which character uses which symbol:  
Naruto: _**~Speaks like this~**_  
Hinata: _**-Speaks like this-**_  
Guren: _**+Speaks like this+**_  
Sunako: _***Speaks like this***_

Now, because you've been waiting for so long for this, let's get on with our standard fare. Once again, if you're going to review, PLEASE make an account so I can properly reply to you. They're free to make, last I checked, so you don't have to pay for anything. ^_^ [A/N]

_**~~~ IN THE SHIROHARE HOTEL, CENTRAL NAMI NO KUNI RESORT DISTRICT ~~~**_

After their early dalliance with breakfast, Naruto and Hinata rose from the floor and cleaned up quickly. After all, they had a night out to enjoy. After a long shower to get the excess bacon grease and maple syrup out of his hair and face, Naruto dressed allowed Hinata to take a quick shower herself… but not without a playful pinch on the rear, which made her giggle like a school girl. Naruto couldn't recall the last time since their wedding that she'd acted that way. He hoped there was some chance for a little bed play in the not-so-distant future for both of them; he had a LOT to make up for, especially the issue of Guren gate crashing their wedding and trying to kill her.

He slowly dressed as she cleaned up, leaving his shirt and tie for last. They didn't NEED to dress up for what he had planned, but it was just as well that they did. They WERE important people.

When Hinata stepped out of the bathroom in nothing but a towel, she was treated to the sight of Naruto slowly slipping on a dress shirt. She smiled and walked over to him when he missed a button.

"H-Hina-chan?" he asked, smiling when she started undoing the buttons. As she spoke, she kept her eyes on his shirt.

"Don't get me wrong, Naru-kun," she said with a grin, "I'm the Hokage's wife. I can't let you go out with a button undone. However… I still think you look MUCH better with it OFF." She looked up from his neck when she finished buttoning the shirt and gave him a playful smile.

He smiled and said, "Ah, Lady Hokage, your wish is my command. Would you like it off before… or after our night out?" The teasing tone in his voice almost set Hinata to tearing his shirt back off and insisting they spend their night out as a night in instead, but she held back. There'd be time for that after.

"Hmmm…" she cooed, kissing his cheek equally teasingly, "How about DURING AND AFTER?" Naruto's grin widened as he reached down to lock his lips to hers for the briefest of moments. She pulled away and sauntered off to get her own clothing together for the night. Naruto was now the one treated to a wonderful sight.

From not even five feet away, Naruto watched as his beautiful wife dropped her towel, pulled a slim-fitting, red body-suit off the bed and slowly slipped into it. Naruto almost felt his suit soak from the copious amounts of drool coming out of his mouth; Hinata pulled the suit on from the feet up and slid the fabric slowly up her body until it wrapped around her generous bust. The fabric seemed to struggle against the size of her bust as she zipped it closed around her neckline. After this, he felt a small pulse of chakra come from her body, and he watched as the legs of her suit changed to become flesh-like. Soon, her arms and legs were once again skin-colored, while the rest of her appeared to be covered in nothing more than a figure-hugging red dress with shoulder straps. Naruto didn't need to use his eyes to know that Hinata was intending, essentially, to walk about on their night out in nothing more than underwear… and it sent his mind into the gutter.

Over her "legs", Hinata pulled on a pair of stockings, and she put on a pair of elbow-length black, lace gloves. She absolutely REFUSED to wear high-heeled shoes unless they were making love, so she wore simple slipper-like shoes. Naruto smiled and took her hand when she came over to tie his tie for him.

"With everything that's happened recently, with our wedding and the attack, where did you find the time to special-order these?" he asked, grinning with half-lidded eyes when she gave him a suggestive look.

"I felt like giving you a SPECIAL gift for our honeymoon. As long as you don't mention that I'm essentially wearing glorified underwear and nothing else while we're in public, no one will know!" she replied, returning his half-lidded grin with one of her own while draping her arms over his shoulders. He chuckled.

"Won't people notice that your "skin" doesn't crease the way it normally does?" he asked, somewhat suspiciously. She shook her head.

"Nope, it's made of a special chakra-conductive material that casts a genjutsu. YOU and I know that I'm not wearing anything underneath this… but no one else will unless you say something, because to the naked eye, I'm wearing a sexy dress with who knows what underneath. They'd NEVER guess I'm walking around almost nude." Naruto smiled.

"I don't want to ruin the mood… but what are my chances tonight?" he asked hesitantly. She smiled and kissed him.

"That depends on how tonight goes," she said pointedly, "If things go well, your chances are astronomically superb. If not… Well, let's just say you'll be spending the night freezing on the couch, and I'll be nice and cozy warm in the bed with all those covers. And, if I get to hear more of your story before we go to bed… well, your chances go up in spades." Naruto grinned.

"Excellent," he said, "I'll be off the couch tonight." Hinata gave him a smile and half-nodded.

"I'd say you've got a decent shot tonight, yes," she responded, "But for now, don't you think we should actually go OUT if we're going to have our night OUT?" Naruto nodded, gently slapping his head.

"Let's be off then, shall we?" he asked. He took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze as they went to the door. Naruto discreetly swiped the room key from her purse on the way out and slipped it into his wallet. This, he thought, was going to be payback for swiping that sock before they left Konoha.

The two left the hotel and went around the growing economic metropolis that had become of Nami no Kuni. There were so many more buildings and businesses open now than there had been thirteen years ago… in fact, there were now so many of them that they were crowding each other in places. In fact, despite there being a specifically designated "gourmet district", with every type of restaurant imaginable embedded within, not even fifty feet from their hotel, the street around them was littered with tiny little one-stop diners and sports bars. Together, the two newlywed lovers made their way to the Gourmet District and sat down in one of the fancier restaurants. They placed their orders and sat waiting for about ten minutes before their appetizers came. Naruto was highly impressed with the speed of the staff's service. Hinata was soon impressed too; the flavor of the food made her tongue come alive from all the flavors.

About an hour later, after ordering another entrée each AND desert, the newlyweds pulled themselves from their seats and made to leave. Naruto happily paid the entire meal, and the two went to a theatre in the "Entertainment District". It was called this because, for some ungodly reason, those in charge had decided to group adult entertainment in with family entertainment and kid's only entertainment. So what one saw was an unholy amalgamation of strip clubs, casinos, book stores, theaters and children's playgrounds that would make even the most stalwart man weep. It was just… so… demented. It was bad enough to drive monks to drink.

They managed to pick their way through the porn theaters and strip joints to find ONE theater that was playing something both wanted to see: an action movie with a romantic sub-plot between the hero and a princess. The movie was good and very entertaining… or, it would have been if there hadn't been couples sitting to every side of them, either making out or making love. Naruto shook his head. Had they found their way into a porn theater after all, or were these people just horribly confused? As the quarter mark of the movie rolled onto the frame, a tender embrace gave way to what could only be described as "hot monkey love." Naruto shook his head and looked over at Hinata to tell her they were going off in search of a REAL theater when he noticed her face turning blood red. The way she was breathing with her mouth open almost made her look like she was breathing steam. It didn't take long for him to understand what was going on; when she dove between his legs and opened his pants, he resigned himself to taking part, whether he wanted to or not.

The movie ended nearly an hour after they went in, and when the nearly empty theater emptied out, Naruto was walking with a bit of a limp. Hinata, on the other hand, had a beaming grin on her face, coupled with a deep red blush and three small lines of "Naruto Sauce" running from the corners of her mouth; no matter how much he pleaded with her, she refused to clean it away.

Hinata stopped just long enough for Naruto to catch up with her. When he did, she hooked her arm in his and led him around with that same beaming grin growing broader by the second. Naruto, as happy as he was, was looking back and forth, as if hoping something would happen soon.

About five minutes into their walk, as if on cue, it began to gently snow. Naruto and Hinata both quietly sighed in relief, while everyone else around them either spun in circles voicing amazement, or standing still in abject shock and bewilderment.

It shouldn't have been snowing at all… IT WAS THE MIDDLE OF JULY.

'_THANK KAMI,'_ Naruto thought, _'Took her long enough! What'd she do, fly in from the moon or something?'_

'_THANK KAMI,'_ Hinata thought, _'what the hell took her so long? Did she have to make a trip through Kumogakure to get here or something?'_

Quite some distance away, suspended between two trees by a self-camouflage platform of ice, Haku sat with her legs crossed, gently weaving her Hyoton chakra through the air of Nami no Kuni to make it gently snow. She'd only been asked to do this the one time, and only for a little while due to how exhausting it was to use THAT much chakra. However, the more she thought about doing this for her leader and his wife… The more the desire to do more grew.

Unfortunately, once her desires grew, so did the force behind her actions. In mere seconds, the flow of her chakra intensified, causing the light dusting of snow from the sky to become a gale-force, hurricane-level snow storm. Civilians ran in terror or got blow into buildings, while the shinobi capable of stopping the storm did their level best to do JUST that, only to ultimately fall short a matter of seconds later. Naruto sighed; Haku had lost control once again.

Using his eyes quickly, he began transporting as many of the surrounding people as he could into The Dimension, then back out and into the hotels nearby. Meanwhile, Hinata locked around for something she could use to stop Haku before anything else went wrong. Locating a set of small rocks nearby that had nearly frozen solid, Hinata used a bit of her power to float the rocks to her hands, where a short burst of Fuuton chakra turned them into sharp projectiles. With one good glance at Haku's hidden location, Hinata took to the air with a strong leap and sent the sharpened stones flying through the fierce winds, guided by her chakra, straight through several key locations in Haku's platform. This, in turn, caused it to shatter and give way, sending Haku tumbling to the ground. As soon as she hit the ground on her head, the winds and snow ceased altogether. Haku stood and vanished. Hinata nodded solemnly; Haku had felt her silent warning of impending doom and had taken off before anything happened.

Soon after, Naruto left the hotel to check the conditions and saw Hinata standing in the road, nodding slowly while facing towards the hotel. He slowly rotated her neck to one side to catch his glance. Naruto immediately strolled to her side, took her hand in his own, and walked her back through the district to reach their hotel. Despite both getting what they'd wanted, both considered having called Haku in for aide a complete failure.

Once back, Naruto sank into the couch with a worried look on his face. Hinata strolled over, slipping out of her body suit and into a nightgown as she approached. As she sat on his lap, she moved the bottom hem of her nightgown over her head and squeaked in surprise when Naruto's arms clasped around her back to pull her flush against him. The gown was still over her eyes, which did nothing to protect Hinata from a surprise kiss… not that she was really complaining. After a minute of passionate kisses, Naruto pulled away and pulled the gown down, helping her dress. She smiled coyly and kissed his nose.

"I thought you wanted me out of my clothes?" she asked, feigning shyness. Naruto smiled and kissed her neck gently.

"I did… but your skin feels really cold," he said, "If you stay undressed, you may catch cold… and what fun could we possibly have on our honeymoon is my honey under the moonlight isn't at her best?" He smiled as Hinata melted into his arms and kissed his cheek.

"When did you get so romantic?" she asked happily.

"When we started dating behind everyone's backs," he replied with a kiss to her ear. She shivered and cuddled closer as Naruto reached for the other side of the couch and grabbed a blanket. Soon, they were carefully wrapped in the fluffy article, and getting quite warm.

Hinata smiled warmly as she said, "Can you continue with the story, Naruto? We were just finishing up the mission to Nami."

Naruto nodded and hummed a short tune before replying, "Yes indeed… I think we left off the day we were leaving…"

_**_  
CHAPTER 11A: A NIGHT ON THE TOWN & A SPECIAL START**_

OP: "RE:MEMBER" - FLOW

_**~ It had been a rough couple weeks for all of us, but finally it was time to go back home. I was still kind of shocked that despite all that had happened, they still wanted to name Tazuna-san's bridge after me… ~**_

_The day after Tsunami and Inari finished off Gato and guaranteed he would never rein over Nami no Kuni again, Team Kurenai set out for Konoha with Zabuza and Haku in tow. The townspeople had gathered and decided to name the bridge after Naruto in honor of his bravery, strength and force of will… despite the fact that the boy's ravenous hunger had nearly eaten their town to pieces._

_The initial trip into the forest outside of Nami was a simple trek, and luckily, no bandits or assassins were about looking for a quick headhunt. By the time night had fallen, the group of six had made it half-way through the forest and had set up camp in a small glen for the night. Kurenai set up s small array of seal talismans to project an illusory barrier around the campsite; this ensured that if anyone DID stumble upon them, they'd have sufficient warning. After a quick dinner of wild tiger stew and whatever emergency rations Hinata and Shino had left, Naruto struck up conversation with Zabuza, asking him if he could teach him the Kirigakure technique, which the taller man readily agreed to. Haku set about attempting to make amends with Hinata for keeping her away from Naruto's battle, and despite their earlier animosity, the two girls managed to get along quite well._

_Meanwhile, Shino had slunk off to check on his hive, leaving Kurenai alone to evaluate the situation. Left alone with no one to talk to and only her thoughts for company, Kurenai did the one thing that had gotten her so far along in her career: allowing her eyes to wander from one person to another, she set about analyzing everyone in the clearing with her._

'Alright,' _she thought, moving her eyes first to the only other females in the group, _'Hinata is due for a new analysis. She's definitely proven herself to be a ferocious adversary in battle, if what she did to that one thug in the forest is any hint…' _Kurenai shuddered violently as she remembered the one man in question… Hinata had simply activated her Byakugan, walked up to the man in question and tapped a string of points along his waist, then sliced at him with a flat hand. She'd then used his upper body as a ball and kicked it up into a tree, where it had become impaled on a sturdy branch. From there, gravity had done its own work and the man's severed lower body, having held on by only a few loosened muscles fibers before the kick, finally gave up the ghost and separated from the rest of him, falling to the ground in a useless heap._

'ENOUGH KURENAI, DO NOT TRAUMATIZE YOURSELF!'_ she screamed at herself, clamping her eyes shut tightly to try and shut out the image. A couple seconds later, she reopened her eyes and continued, _'Hyuuga Hinata: a sleeping dragon locked inside the body of a lamb. At first glance, there's nothing to her, but given proper motivation or undue provocation, and she will not hesitate to make cream cheese out of an opponent. Full potential is yet to be realized, but it seems no real work will be needed to raise her abilities to another level."

_Moving her gaze to the girl next to Hinata, Kurenai thought, _'Next is Yuki Haku… This one seems nearly as fearsome in battle as Hinata, though a little rough around the edges; it appears she is unable to control her desires for extended periods of time and has little to no knowledge of anything of a sexual nature, save for how to sate herself when the urge gets too strong. She possesses a very strong Kekkei that grants her control over ice and snow and is an apprentice to Momochi Zabuza. Potential threat level: high. Potential ally level: high. Chance of turning against us depends solely on whether or not Zabuza does.'

_She then moved on to the man himself, giving him a piercing stare as she thought, _'Momchi Zabuza, nuke-nin turned Konoha ally. Formerly the Demon of the Mist, he has a high degree of suiton techniques, as he should for his ex-home nation is known for it. He is also a master of swordplay, particularly zanbatou swordsmanship. He seems to be quite amiable with anyone he can use, or bests him in combat. He doesn't seem to possess a Kekkei himself. Potential threat level: extremely high. Potential ally level: extremely high.'

_At this, her gaze shifted to Naruto, and her mind stopped. She considered him for a moment before thinking, _'Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto, a mystery wrapped in an ever expanding enigma. Initial analysis still proves true; this boy is chock-full of hidden talents, tricks and surprises. His latent abilities continue to become stronger by the day, and his endurance in the face of exceedingly high obstacles is noteworthy. He may very well wind up becoming the one who carries the team on his back soon. Overall potential and power levels are unknown, but continuously growing. He may very well achieve his goal of being the Hokage.'

_Kurenai nodded slowly and got off her seat to pull up her sleeping bag and curl up inside. Inside of a few minutes, the red-eyed illusion mistress was sleeping like a baby. A short time later, the others followed her examples and settled in for bed. The last to fall asleep was Zabuza, who insisted on remaining awake to keep watch, though he passed out several hours after the others, and it was roughly midnight before his drowsiness took him._

_**~ I was actually kind of shocked when I woke up later… you definitely surprised me, Hina-chan. ~**_

_**- . . . I already apologized for that, though! -**_

_**~ I know… I just find it cute, and can't help but bring it up . . . ~**_

_An hour later, Naruto awoke to a rustling sound in his bag, as well as a foreign body. He turned slightly and fund himself face-to face with a sleeping Hinata. His face reddened considerably, and his body heated up as blood pumped through his veins at a heightened level. He blinked several times for confirmation, finding himself unable to rub his eyes to check because they were pinned to his sides by her arms. He stayed perfectly still until several minutes later Hinata stirred next to him. Naruto watched her eyes flutter open slowly, and as realization set in, Hinata began to blush and opened her mouth as if to scream. Naruto managed to move enough that he extricated his arms from her grasp, flipped them over, and pinned her down with one hand over her mouth. She looked up into his eyes and saw worry. Her own pale orbs were glazed with horror and fright, and she felt a faint coming on. _

"_Hinata-chan, I'm going to take my hand away," he said, "And when I do, I want you to calmly explain what happened here, OK?" Hinata steeled herself and nodded slowly, and as Naruto moved away, she breathed a sigh of relief. However, what was strange to her was that her sigh also held hints of… frustration and disappointment. She hated to admit It to herself, but she had wanted him to hold her down and do whatever he wanted. Despite him moving away, she felt relieved; maybe he wasn't that kind of person, regardless f what the villagers said about him. She saw Naruto motion for an explanation, and took a deep breath. It was now or never, and there was no margin for error now; fainting and poking her fingers together wouldn't cut it. _

_In a single moment of blind courage, Hinata grabbed Naruto's hand and led him outside of the illusion barrier, and into a small clearing not too far away. She stood behind a tree, still holding his hand tight in her own, and said it._

_**~ It amazed me how brave you were to admit that to me, Hina-chan. You were always so shy, but scary when you were mad… I never thought you'd actually come out and tell me. ~**_

"_I LOVE YOU NARUTO UZUMAKI!"_

_Naruto's eyes exploded from his head. It was all he could do to keep his mouth from dropping into the bedrock below. He wasn't sure how to react until Hinata jumped forward and wrapped her arms around him tight._

"_That's why I was so scared when you lost consciousness and lost my mind when you burned away. Those three days without you around were hell on earth for me; your being here always makes me strive to be better. I'm sorry if this is too much for you to handle right now, but I… I just couldn't stay without saying it for one more moment. My feelings for you have been eating at me for so long…" Hinata said, taking gasping breaths of air in between gentle sobs. She wasn't so surprised when Naruto gripped her shoulders lightly and pushed her away; it just meant he didn't feel the same way for her, and she'd been expecting that outcome. _

_What did surprise her was Naruto pulling her back into his arms and kissing her square on the lips._

_**- You really made an impression on me you know. We're only twelve years old and you're going for a more mature kiss? -**_

_**~ I wanted it to be special for you. I wasn't going to hurt you, after all. ~**_

_Hinata's eyes widened comically at the contact between their lips, but she did nothing to stop him or resist. After all, why should she when the boy of her dreams was granting her second-greatest wish? Her eyes slowly closed, her arms sealed around his back, and her right leg slowly lifted into the air, bent at the knee at ninety-degrees and her standard-issue open-toed boot flew off into the leaves._

_For as much as she never wanted the moment to end, she sighed a bit in disappointment when Naruto slowly pulled away. Naruto smiled. _

"_We don't have to stop. If you want to, we can keep going," he said innocently. Hinata's eyes brightened and she nodded happily. Naruto smiled and sat them down against the tree. Before Naruto could say a word, Hinata's lips were on him, kissing him harder than a 12-year-old would know how. Naruto didn't let it bother him, though, and returned her emotions with his own. _

_**~ That kissing session was fun. But what truly shocked me was what you said next. ~**_

_After three minutes of passionate kisses, Hinata pulled away and said, "Y-you can touch me if you want, Naruto-kun… just…" Naruto looked her in the eyes, confused._

_**- . . . I-I don't know what came over me there… -**_

_**~ But you were so CUTE when you said it! ~**_

"_Y-you can t-touch over my clothes… and you c-can touch wherever you want… j-just not under my clothes yet…" she continued, building up her courage, "A-and… p-please don't hold b-back… b-be as r-rough as you want…" Naruto's eyes nearly popped out of his head as he nodded dumbly and embraced her again, kissing her and running his hands slowly up and down her back. At a slight moan, Naruto nodded._

_**~ I really didn't know how far you wanted to go. I was just going on instinct. ~**_

_Hinata pulled away and tuned around so she sat facing into the woods with her back against his chest. Naruto took the hint and took his chin in one hand, then slowly turned her head up so he could kiss her again. As soon as their lips touched, Hinata tried to take control of their situation by pressing her tongue against his mouth. She wasn't prepared for Naruto's response; instead of simply allowing her access, he opened his mouth and sent his tongue into her mouth. Hinata blinked once in surprise at the sudden turn of events, but relaxed into his arms as their tongues danced in her mouth._

_Hinata squeaked in surprise when she felt Naruto's free hand press against her sweater, and gave a somewhat strangled yelp when he squeezed the fabric. She squealed in shock when his hand found the zipper and pulled it down, then pushed her forward just enough to loosen her sweater around her shoulders to allow him better access. With her hands still inside the sleeves at the wrists, the sweater nestled into the space between Hinata's rear and Naruto's lap, effectively trapping her arms behind her back. She squirmed, trying fruitlessly to free her hands as Naruto's hand snaked its way over her mesh top to gently rub and squeeze her budding chest. She moaned softly, the feeling of his hand on her body, even if it WAS over her clothes, sending sparks throughout her body._

_Hinata's face carried a multitude of shifting emotions: fear that someone would find them, bliss at being in her Naruto's arms, pleasure from his touch, and a careless smirk that seemed to say she didn't care if they were found. The hand that had moved her head to meet his left as her right arm hooked around the back of his neck and the other hand rested on his cheek. _

_Naruto's hand worked its way down her clothing to her pants; it ran slowly and carefully over the cloth on her legs. She gasped silently as his fingers dipped briefly, and accidentally, between her legs on several occasions, but couldn't help but feel her body react to the stimulus he unknowingly delivered. She felt a wet spot develop on her panties, which, fortunately, Naruto hadn't touched yet. She gasped and shivered when his fingers slipped underneath her pants to touch her thighs. Hinata sucked in a long, deep breath as electric shocks shot from the points of contact all the way to her brain. Her eyes went wide as his hand trailed over her legs and onto her panties, where he took one feel of the wet cloth and removed his hand. She watched as his fingers entered her field of vision and spread to reveal a sticky web of fluid forming between his digits. _

_**~ I didn't realize I was arousing you at the time… and I don't even know what led me to do what I did next. ~**_

_Naruto looked at the sticky fluid clinging to his fingers and looked down at Hinata to see her head bowed in embarrassment. A deep crimson blush, deeper and redder than any she'd ever had, adorned her face, and her breath had hitched into sighing pants. His mind ground to a halt as realization hit him, and his hand shot under her pants again. She gasped audibly as his fingers soared over her moistened underwear again and again, rubbing the smooth fabric, and the lips of her womanhood below. Hinata's voice came out in garbled gasps and moans as Naruto continued touching her, and soon the full effect of his actions showed through. He gasps gave way to euphoric moans as years of desire and frustration were slowly worked out of her system by Naruto's inexperienced, yet deft fingers. However, she knew it wasn't the right time for him to see this side of her. However, his hands felt so good that she just couldn't work up the voice to make him stop._

_Soon after, Hinata gave a strangled cry as she did another thing she'd thought would be impossible; JUST before Naruto could bring her to the point of no return, she used her hands to push away from him and landed several feet away, face down in the dirt with her hands behind her back and her panties soaked. If the wrong person had walked in and seen the situation, they'd have suspected the young man of rape._

_For several agonizingly long minutes, Naruto sat in place, staring at the ground where Hinata had just been, unable to understand why she'd broken away from him. On the other hand, Hinata didn't move as she breathed in long pants and tried desperately to control her aching body. Soon, after several deep, ragged breaths, she steeled herself and slowly rose to her feet. Naruto was inadvertently treated to the sight of Hinata straightening her clothing and pulling up her pants slowly, as if to entice him. He rose also, straightening his clothes as they walked back to the camp. Along the way, he reached over, took her hand in his, and gave it a gentle squeeze. Hinata jumped when he did so, but smiled and relaxed as she pulled closer to him and rested her head against his shoulder. _

_When they returned to the camp through Hinata's careful use of her eyes, they climbed back into Naruto's sleeping bag and fell asleep in each other's arms. As Naruto lost consciousness, he found himself thinking that it was very comfortable being next to Hinata. Neither noticed the subtle change taking place in Hinata's eyes that night._

_The next morning Kurenai awoke before the others and went on high alert when she discovered Hinata wasn't in her sleeping bag. However, after a couple quick seconds of searching, she relaxed and smiled happily when she found the missing girl in Naruto's bag._

"_It would seem they're trying to comfort each other," called the voice of Shino from a tree several feet away. Kurenai spun on her heels to find Shino hanging upside down from a large branch on the tree; he was surrounded by a double helix formation of his bugs. They disconnected his feet from the branch and brought him to land on his feet in front of her. _

_Before she could even ask the question, Shino continued, "Hinata sleep-walked into Naruto's bag last night, and he nearly had a bad reaction when he woke up. They had a brief scuffle that ended with her grabbing his hand and leading him out of the barrier, where she announced her feelings and he kissed her. They kept up like that for a good three minutes before she gave him permission to touch her. That particular scene ended with her breaking away into the ground. It would seem she didn't want him to make her go over the edge." Kurenai was stunned; she didn't whether she should congratulate Hinata for her courage, scold the two for going as far as they had, or slap Shino silly for watching his teammates and not alerting her sooner. She settled on taking the unknown fourth option: She slapped Shino hard across the face, scolded him for peeping on his teammates, and then thanked him for telling her. She'd congratulate the two when they woke, and in private, before warning them against going too far at their age. That thought brought back a painful memory from her own past… the beginning of her relationship with the son of the Third._

_She pushed the memory to the back to her mind and waited for the rest of the camp to stir before releasing her barrier and helping the group to pack and ready for mobilization. Within twelve hours of fast travel, they arrived at the village gates, where they were greeted by a patrol squad and taken to see the Hokage. The elderly man was shocked at Naruto's actions, but willingly accepted Zabuza and Haku as shinobi of Konoha… except…_

"_I'm sorry Team Kurenai," Hiruzen said, "But I'm afraid a rather urgent mission came up that I volunteered you four for. Momochi-san and Yuki-san will be given their rank tests while you're gone, but you must leave immediately." Your contractor, Su-Mo will meet you all at the entrance to the Sunagakure deserts; you're headed for heat, so bring LOTS of water."_

_Having been given such short warning, the group made for their homes, packed what they'd need and took off for Kaze no Kuni as soon as they could. What awaited them was...__HHHH_

Naruto finished his tale when he heard the gentle sounds of Hinata's breath against his chest. Once more, she'd fallen asleep in the middle. He shifted her into his arms in a bridal carry, then rose and strode to their bed, where he set Hinata down on the mattress and climbed in. He pulled the covers over them and held her close as she slept. He wasn't happy about not having any "Bed Play", but was more than happy to just lay there and hold his beautiful wife in his arms as she slept. Soon, he lost consciousness, his last waking thought revolving around what she'd do tomorrow.

_**~~~ MEANWHILE, IN KONOHAGAKURE TOP-PRIORITY PRISON, MAXIMUM SECUIRTY ZONE FLOOR THREE ~~~**_

Only six people had been granted temporary rights to come to this floor. However, it mattered little, for the girl in the Warden's office couldn't have cared less; they could come and go as they pleased. She was just SO BORED.

Sunako Momoshiro was never known for her patience or ability to cope under dull situations. Most of the time in such circumstances, she'd hunker down and drift off to sleep until the sounds of battle rang and stirred her to action. Most of the time, she was a simple person who didn't like pointless questions, especially when they revolved around her… predicament.

Sunako was not a full Konoha resident, not yet. However, the Hokage at the time had seen her as a VERY competent addition to their ranks, despite her being a treaty offering between Sunagakure and Konoha a decade and some years back. She had met the current Hokage as he passed into her village on a mission… and he had been one of the first to receive her "rebuttal" for pointing out her limbs.

The origins of her arms and legs were not a story that many people liked to hear, as they involved a certain degree of experimentation and amputation. Her limbs weren't her major area of issue, however; it was her dislike of boredom. Most people who knew Sunako knew that if she got bored, one had better find her an outlet to vent her boredom, otherwise she'd fall asleep… and a sleeping Sunako would often lead to scenes such as the one witnessed by a certain twitching prisoner with light-blue hair not two hours before this particular nap.

Guren slowly uncurled from her fetal position curl and slowly rose to her cot to curl back up and sleep. She still couldn't understand the insane outburst of the seemingly insane female warden; what in KAMI'S NAME was a "Beat Buster"? Moreover, was "Stag Buster" supposed to be the new name for those girls that popped out of cakes at stag parties?*__

Guren had nearly climbed onto her cot when she heard a banging at the bars of her cell. She was afraid to turn around, but something deep in the pit of her stomach told her to turn anyway. Against her better judgment, she turned quickly on her heels and screamed.

In front of her cell was the prison warden, who had chosen to use her favorite intimidation factor: The Dragon Armor, giving her a purely reptilian look and a large dragon maw for one hand. She held a full-sized paper parasol in one hand, bearing an image of a dragon breathing flame.

Sunako had no idea what was happening; it was just another of her freaky moments. Lucky for her, it would scare her unintended target into complete silence and submission… at least for that day.

Sunako spun the parasol in her hand absentmindedly, and, despite being fast asleep, had a full, deep, scary tone to her voice when next she spoke.

"In the Land of Fire, Leaves Dance in Shimmering Wind. In the Land of Wind, the Sand Blows Fierce. In the Land of Lightning, the Clouds Mold the Stones," Sunako said in a deep, almost swimming voice. With this, she tossed the parasol into the air and spun on her heel to the left.

"The public doesn't know, and will never know, what transpires in these dark halls!" At this, Sunako lifted one leg in a massive sweep and turned to face Guren, who shrieked in fright. This girl's eyes were fastened shut in sleep, and a demented grin was all over her face! She rotated her upper body from her hips.

Sunako clapped her hands, then, in a booming voice, Sunako announced, "I AM KONOHA'S PUPPET PRISON WARDEN! MOMOSHIRO SUNAKO, ASANJOU!" Sunako raised her left hand into the air, then back down in an open palm along the side of her head while her right extended forward, open-palmed and fingers spread. Her face had a weird, twisted grin on it… and then her eyes opened.* Guren screamed in horror and dove under her cot, grabbing her blanket in the act to cover herself.

Sunako seemed to snap to her senses a moment later, when she looked from one side to the other and back again several times and then asked aloud "What am I doing here?" She looked into the cell on a whim and noticed Guren under her cot, shaking like a frightened puppy. She shrugged and walked away.

"Oh, you're going to cower in fear?" Sunako said loudly as she walked away, baiting Guren out, "And here I was going to tell you all about how I met the Hokage for no apparent reason. But, if you're sure you don't want to know, I suppose that's fine. I'll just go back to the Warden's office and nap some more. Who knows? Maybe I'll wind up here again and torment you a little more…"

In less than a second, Guren had slammed herself against the bars of her cell and shouted, "PLEASE, DON'T LEAVE! TELL ME HOW YOU MET HIM! I WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THAT BRAT!" Sunako turned and smirked.

"Well, I'll tell you then…" She drawled, almost seductively, "What I tell you may or may not play to your desires. You may hear something interesting… and you may not. Are you still sure you're up to it?" Guren gave no more response than a simple nod. Sunako smiled and leaned against the wall opposite Guren's cell.

"Alright then, let me tell you all about it…" she cooed, "It was roughly thirteen years ago, and he was coming in to help me on a mission…"

_**_  
CHAPTER 11B: ANTICS AND TALES FROM THE WARDEN  
_**_

_**** Before we start, I understand the brat usually provides commentary while he tells his story?***_

_**+Yes, actually… +**_

_***Well, I'm not. I don't like interrupting myself, so I'll go from start to finish without saying a word, and you'd BETTER do the same.**_

_**Now, enough with the pleasantries, it's time to get on with the story. I'd never been one for company, and I sure as HELL didn't want to have to call on Konoha of all villages for help. However, our Kazekage demanded I be the one in charge of our mission, AND demanded I call for aid. Although it irritated me to have to do it, I sent out a mission request to the Hokage and asked for a strong team. I never thought I'd be on the receiving end of watching a twelve-year-old boy tear strips out of men more than twice his age… ***_

_At the edge of a vast, desert wasteland, a single young girl stood, as though waiting for someone. She was bored of all the waiting and finding herself nodding off. Her ocean-blue eyes slowly fluttered shut as she passed out standing straight up, silently allowing the desert sands and harsh, hot winds to blow through her pixie-cut blonde hair. The wind did little to her clothes, as the only clothing she had was a black leotard; a large black scroll with a yin-yang insignia sat across her shoulders, held in place by a pair of crisscrossing straps that rested under her shoulders. The wind blew her body to and fro, but not once did she tip over._

_She didn't know how long she'd been sleeping, but she was jostled awake by a slight shaking of her shoulder. Her eyes snapped open and she went on high alert, lashing out with a kunai to strike her attacker. She found the tip of her blade piercing the hand of a young boy, and she blinked. _

"_A… Are you… the ones from Konoha?" she asked tentatively. She scanned over the four before her, an evenly-balanced group of two boys and two girls. The tallest of the group was a dark-haired female with strange, red eyes. The shortest of the group was a blonde boy with an idiotic smile; the other two were a dark-haired boy with a high-collared jacket and shades, and an indigo-haired girl with pale eyes and a somewhat nervous look on her face._

_The taller woman was about to say something when the dark-haired boy stepped forward and spoke, "My name is Aburame Shino, of Konohagakure's Aburame Clan. Next to me are my teammates Naruto, of the Uzumaki Clan," He gestured to Naruto, who nodded, understanding why Shino left out his Namikaze roots, "Hinata, of the Hyuuga Clan," he gesture to Hinata, who blushed a bit and nodded, "And our sensei, Yuuhi Kurenai. We were sent to meet someone by the name of Su-Mo for a mission; where can we find them?" Kurenai gave Shino a nasty look._

_Sensing the tension in the air, Naruto plastered a dopy smile on his face and asked, "Yeah! Were looking for a big fat guy in a fundoshi and a topknot! Where can we find him?" _

_The reactions of those present were highly varied. Kurenai gave Naruto a scandalized look before breaking into soft chuckles. Hinata snorted once in amusement before breaking down into hysteric laughter. Shino's head slowly rotated on his neck as he sent Naruto an evil glare with his covered, blind eyes. Sunako, on the other hand, simply stared dumbly at Naruto and his two female compatriots. Who the hell WERE these people anyways?_

"_I hate to burst your chuckle bubble," she said in an odd dead-pan, "But Su-Mo is right here. My name is Momoshiro Sunako, and I'll be at your service until we reach Sunagakure. Follow me, please; I'll brief you on our way." With that, she turned to lead the way. _

_She barely made it a step, however, when Naruto piped up, "Hey, your arms and legs are kinda weird. Are you sick or something?" _

_Naruto, for reasons that escaped him, NEVER saw what hit him. Neither did his team mates. Sunako never saw what hit her back, either. Before anyone could see what happened, Naruto had hit the ground face-first, foam building around the edges of his mouth and a large knot on his head. Moments later, Sunako had doubled over on the ground next to Naruto, gasping for air and clutching her sides in pain. Kurenai looked from the odd young woman to her brash student multiple times before noticing Hinata. The young girl had a shroud of pale, blue chakra engulfing both her hands, and her Byakugan were active… but it was strange… where had she seen that ring-like pattern before?_

_And… if her eyes WEREN'T playing tricks on her, why were the veins around Hinata's eyes less pronounced, and fewer in number? _

_However, as soon as they'd appeared, the halo effect in Hinata's pale eyes had vanished. No sooner had Hinata returned to normal than she collapsed into the sand. Kurenai wasted no time and ran to help her student._

_A quick two-second diagnosis determined that Hinata was suffering from a moderate case of chakra exhaustion, and would require several hours of rest. When Naruto and Sunako stood several minutes later, Naruto took charge of Hinata, and carried her on his shoulders as they walked towards Sunagakure._

_On their way, Sunako spoke._

"_The purpose of calling for outside help on this mission is due in large part to the nature of the mission itself. I'm part of a special force designated to watch over the children of the Third Kazekage, namely his youngest child Gaara. You see…" Sunako said, stopping to think her words over briefly before continuing, "He's a Jinchuriki."_

_Kurenai and Shino's breath hitched in their throats; THEY were being sent to do something about a Jinchuriki?_

"_The decision to use young Gaara was made by the Kazekage himself, and ever since he's strongly regretted it. The Elder Council of Suna has decided that Gaara is unfit to be a shinobi, let alone ALIVE, and have deigned to … well, "DISPOSE" of him, if you will," Sunako said, using finger quotes on the word "DISPOSE". She continued, "The Kazekage recently became aware of their plans when FIVE separate attempts were made on young Gaara's life, all within the span of 12 hours." Naruto listened intently._

_Sunako took a short breath and continued, saying, "The Kazekage has ordered me to call in help from Konoha, which is where you four come in. our job is to protect young Gaara-sama with our lives. So far the assassins they've sent have been low-scale weaklings who couldn't handle Gaara-sama's unique brand of… how would you say… survival instinct…or mental protection, maybe? In any case, Gaara-sama is capable of defending himself, but things have been escalating. They started with simple ambushes, but they've begun using some of the more classical means, such as poison and traps in the halls. They've yet to assassinate his guards and pose as them, but that's one of the reasons Kazekage-sama has requested I bring you in. He fears they might try to take ME down in some way, and I'm actually the strongest guard Gaara-sama has, aside from his older siblings."_

_Here, Naruto interrupted, "I'm sorry to butt in, but what exactly MAKES you the strongest guard this Jinchuriki Gaara has? As far as I can tell, you're about the same age as us, if not a little older. You can't be more than a couple months fresh form the Academy yourself." Sunako tensed, wanting to lash out at him again for addressing her sensitive issue, but instead decided it was better for them to know. She held up a hand for the group to stop and pulled the sealing scroll from across her back._

"_You want to know so badly? Fine, I'll show you," she snapped, biting her thumb and swiping some blood across the parchment of the scroll to release the seal. From it came a large, round object with the kanji for "Dragon" emblazoned around an image of a dragon breathing fire. She swiped the same thumb over the image on the object, causing it to burst into flames, and then fold out into a large, winged mechanical dragon. _

_Sunako squatted on one leg, then leapt into the air with a shout of "KUGUTSU GATTAI*!" With that, time seemed to stop._

_Naruto and his team watched in shock as Sunako's arms and legs simply POPPED off of her body, leaving gaps at the shoulders and hips, which revealed mechanical ports with small silver streams of what appeared to be chakra coming out of them. These streams disconnected from her limbs; her limbs then fell onto the scroll to be safely sealed away. The Dragon roared as it flew behind her and disassembled. As the limbs and head, connected to its long neck, separated from the dragon's torso, the tail shot off and straightened into a long spear. The torso clamped down around Sunako's body, reconfiguring to her body to give her winged armor. The dragon's limbs connected onto her shoulder and hip sockets, and the dragon's neck connected to her right-hand shoulder; the dragon's mouth reconfigured itself into a large, fang-covered flamethrower that covered her clawed hand within. She clenched her right hand's talons into a tight fist as her body finished reconfiguring, with the horns on the dragon's head moving up to form a spiked crown atop her own skull. With a flourish, Sunako took to the skies, grabbed the dragon's tail in her left hand and assumed an open-legged stance. She thrust the spear in a repeated stabbing motion while her right hand released a torrent of fire._

"_GATTAI KANRYO! MOMOSHIRO SUNAKO, ETO-RYUO MODE!*" She announced as the sun seemed to glow a deep crimson behind her. Inside his mind, Naruto could feel his Mother ogling the young woman with drool coming from her mouth, while his father and cousin whistled in appreciation of her skills. The Kyuubi, for as quiet as It had been, simply growled in jealousy; deep crimson sunsets were HIS THING!_

_Sunako touched down, let her transformation sit for a few moments, then blinked and willed the armor off. The Dragon Armor extracted itself from her body, then pieced itself back together, then flew back into the scroll and tossed out her limbs. The human-like puppet limbs reconnected to Sunako's sockets quickly, allowing her to regain her footing rather quickly._

"_THAT is what makes me Gaara-sama's strongest guard. I am a practitioner of Sunagakure's famous puppet techniques and was PERSONALLY trained by the man now known as Sasori of the Red Sand before he went rogue. I have 11 other puppets like this one back in Suna, all of which were a parting gift to me from him before he left on his path," she said. She turned and continued walking, giving the signal that they should follow. _

_However, Sunako felt uncomfortable the whole trip, and her discomfort was directly related to her words. She hadn't lied about having been trained by the legendary missing-nin Sasori… but from there, she knew her story had to have sounded suspect. No one picked up on it in the least, as far as she knew. The thought of a murderous rogue ninja being NICE and giving PRESENTS to ANYONE, let alone TAKING AN APPRENTICE, sounded strange even when she SAID it._

_However, she didn't realize that Naruto and Shino had seen through her lie. They gave each other a side-long glance that confirmed each other's thoughts; they would wait until she felt comfortable enough to talk about it._

_~MEANWHILE, IN SUNAGAKURE… ~_

_Three figures in dark clothing had snuck into a seemingly random hotel room that strangely had several animal-themed puppets hanging on the walls. Each one was attaching a small device onto each puppet, but despite their hardest searching, could not find something specific. They suddenly heard a small clicking noise as the door knob turned, and they left before the hotel maids came in to clean up, all admiring the craftsmanship of the puppets on the walls and idly commenting on the absence of one particular puppet…_

Sunako smiled wickedly as she stretched and yawned dramatically, then said, "I'm getting bored of telling you that story. Maybe I'll go take another nap." She started to walk off, when Guren called, "Why not take up a hobby? Like jigsaw puzzles or making ships in bottles?"

Sunako blinked and tottered off, thinking about this while leaving Guren behind to ponder what she'd heard. The Warden wasn't telling her the whole story; what else was going on?

~ THE END… FOR NOW… ~

Hope you liked it! :)

For those who don't know, Sunako's little skit in front of Guren's cell is a reference to the roll call for "Ninpuu Sentai Hurricaneger". To SEE these guys do their roll call is akin to watching Jiraiya's posturing. Additionally, the references to "Beet and Stag Buster" are a reference to last year's Super Sentai series, "Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters". Later, the line "Kugutsu Gattai" roughly translates as "Puppet Combination", and is yet another reference to Super Sentai, as all of the giant mecha they use have the word "gattai" in the name. And again, shortly after, "GATTAI KANRYO! MOMOSHIRO SUNAKO, ETO-RYUO MODE!" roughly translates to "Combination Complete! Sunako Momoshiro, Zodiac Dragon King Mode".

For those wondering, the various technique names are thus:


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